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'She'll understand, won't she?' said Ben. 'You can get her something when we've fin-
ished the trip. She knows you're not allowed to spend any money.'
'Yeah,butthat'sabitlameofme,isn'tit?Imean,we'vemanagedtogetaccommodation
every night, food, most meals, bikes, clothes and plenty of beer. I should have got a card,
at least.'
'Well, we're at a Post Office. What better place? Why don't you go and ask Di?'
Iwentbackinsideandcasually explained mypredicament toDiwithoutactually asking
her for a birthday card.
'I can give you a card and a stamp,' she said before I had even finished speaking. 'Go
and help yourself from the rack over there.'
Di was one of those rare gems of humanity that you occasionally come across. I could
imagine that she was the pride of the village and knew everything about everyone. Not in
a gossipy way, but simply because of her warmth and generosity. I researched Nettleton
whilst writing this topic, to try and establish what county it was in (it turns out it's in Wilt-
shire. To be honest, I didn't even realise we had passed through Wiltshire. I don't think
I even knew where Wiltshire was). My search unearthed another interesting fact. I dis-
coveredthatDiwasawardedtheaccoladeof
Best Village Shop/ Post Office in Britain 2007
.
This was a pretty strange coincidence, considering it was the only Post Office that we vis-
ited on the entire trip, and also that Di's generosity and award-winning potential was so
evident. I quote one of the judges, who sums it up far better than I could:
'This is a hugely difficult category to judge because our village shop-keepers and sub-
postmasters form the hearts of every rural community, but Di Bell is a very special lady
who inspires real devotion from her customers. She received dozens of nominations from
people of all ages, all praising her warm nature and the fact that she is a lifeline who al-
ways goes above and beyond the call of duty. With the threat of closure looming over many
Post Offices in the region it is the perfect time to emphasise that our branches are about
the soul of country life, not just about stamps and car tax. Many of Di's customers said that
the village would change for the worse without her, which is why I am delighted to honour
her in this competition and raise the profile of our embattled Post Offices. Long may Di
continue!'
'Why have you signed the card 'DW', you weirdo?' asked Ben.
'Oh, no reason, it's a long story,' I said coyly.
'Well we've got plenty of time. In fact, about 800 miles worth of time.'
'It's just something my mum calls me, that's all,' I said, casually hoping that would sat-
isfy his curiosity. It didn't.
'I gathered that much, but what does it stand for?'
There was a long pause.
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