Nobuko's requirement in pursuing her calligraphy wasfor it to bring out her personality and thus shethrew herself into producing sketches whose themesreflected her innermost feelings. These she framedand decorated our rooms or exchanged with herfriends. This wish to display was, I think, her wayof giving something back – a ‘thank you’ for thememory of our trip together to England and as anexpression of her affection for her father. Thereare vignettes she drew even before receiving thenews about her cancer with an eye to what wouldhappen after her death and these, too, she said, shewould be happy to see displayed in a corner of theirroom as a way of perpetuating her memory.

I was very pleased indeed that the sketches Nobuko gaveto Mr & Mrs Watts were kept safe and sound bythem over many years – in their case fortwenty-seven, and by Jackie for sixteen, for therewas also a part of me expressing my thanks for theirsupport. They both very kindly wrote heart-warmingmemories of Nobuko and also set down their thoughtsabout the sketches, and I would like to thank themfor the use of their pictures (see pp.188 and 190).Nobuko knew that without my research into IsabellaBird and the related activities like my photographicexhibitions there would have been no meaningfulassociations with people for me nor the pleasure Iderived from them. She too drew the samesatisfaction from her version of that, namely hercalligraphy, from which she took the strength tocarry on living. This was Nobuko's wish to havetranscended time and space and live on even now. Shealso made of those vignettes works to be treasured.Then, for my part, after Nobuko's death, which wasten years after she had first decorated our roomwith it, I took the first of these sketches (see thefirst one on p. 146) and engraved it on her smallgrave.