My best mate Billy boy is gone

  My good mate Billy Boy is gone. 

Unreal how I met this old boy and made an amazing friendship with him. 

Back in about 2018 I seen Billy at the garage struggling to put air in his tyres. I got out and said do you want a hand there mate? He was more than happy to let me help. We got chatting and at the time I had not long stumbled across Buddhist, yoga and tree planting and was very enthusiastic telling him how much it had changed my life. I had also just given up drink around that time too after years of struggling to break away from it. 

After we chatted and I got the air in his tyres I got back in my van and thought nothing more of it. 

Billy had went home after that and decided to try and track me down. He said he called around judo centres looking for a tree planting Buddhist. He had no luck. Think he got mixed up between judo and yoga!

At that time I had a tree planting charity and one of my trees got ripped out. The whole tree was pulled out by the roots, the tree was shredded and I managed to find the decapitated tree stump that was thrown over the hedge behind where it was planted. 

I was furious back then and went to the papers with my story. The Paper put me on the front page holding my decapitated tree stump.

Billy was sitting reading the paper one day and there he seen me with my tree stump. He contacted the paper to see if he could get my details to write me a letter. The journalist dealing with the story messages me to say someone is looking your address here and would you like me to give him it. I said no probs work away. 

I then got this thank you letter which I still have today along with a cheque for £25 for my tree planting. 

I thought nothing more of this and just went about my business. 

I was living with my dad at the time and he had seen the letter and said you should call and see that old boy. (my dad knew by the letter and writing that he was an old man) That was nice of him to do that he said. I sort of ignored my dad to be honest. I had no real interest in going and seeing him. My dad kept going on at me saying, you drive past his house every day and you should definitely call in and see him. 

At that time my dad had been diagnosed with brain cancer and we weren't sure if he was going to make it. 

I then give in to my dads advice and went and seen Billy. We hit it off right away. Billy was an antique dealer and he had known of my previous house clearance business were I sold lots of antiques myself. 

He said he tried to find my old business many years ago as I was the talk of the antiques trade. Which he had no joy. Three times he said he went looking for my buyers and anything - sellers of everything superstore with no luck. 

I always said to Billy I'm so glad he didnt find me all them years ago as we would not have got on. I wasnt the same person I am today I said. I was a cut throat wheeler dealer with not much time for the likes of Billy who's every pound was a prisoner. 

About 6 months into our friendship my dad passed away and my family home was gone. 

Billy provided me with that warm family home replacement, always the key in the door and the fire going with a big warm welcome. He loved wee betty also and every day I never missed calling in and sitting with him. Most of the time we watched was the Antiques road show. 

After my dad passed I was homeless, I had no other choice but to move into this old rotted cabin where I ended up staying for about 6 years. Billy was an absolute godsend for me for me back then. 

Theres not many people in this life you just click with. He was my best mate and I'm very grateful for our friendship. 

The tree stump I kept in a black bag out the back of my cabin for a couple or years. I took it out one day and it had miraculously started to grow back. I potted it up and it has been growing away in Billys garden for many years now. I always told him that after he passes I will plant it in The Phantom Planters HQ in memory of you and our friendship. 

I'll miss you big time Billy Boy. Big void in my life right now. Sad times... 

RIP mate.