INSEPARABLE: John and Maisie Bond on their 75th wedding anniversary. Photo/File
They were inseparable for nearly 77 years. Now Rotorua's John Bond has had to say goodbye to his wife and unwavering companion, Maisie.
Maisie Bond (nee Lindridge) died peacefully at home on Wednesday at the age of 98, leaving behind John, their two sons Tony and Paul and their families.
Speaking with the Rotorua Daily Post yesterday, Maisie's family described her as adventurous, intelligent, artistic and progressive, but above all else, a woman whose heart was always open.
"My own mother died in 2000, she was my best friend and I never thought anyone could replace her, but Maisie came pretty close. When I met her, she took me into her arms, and I never left them," daughter-in-law Lynne Bond said.
In the span of nearly a century Maisie's adventurous spirit took her all around the world, saw her become a world champion wool spinner and a loving mother and wife.
Mentioning her name, John's eyes well and his voice catches in his throat.
"I've lost my companion of a lifetime. It's difficult to negotiate having a companion next to you for so long and then having them gone.
"We were married coming on 77 years. In that time we made so many beloved memories."
The couple met at a tennis club seaside outing in England in 1940.
"I was introduced to Maisie and we hit it off quite well. We both knew pretty quickly that we got along well and about four months later we were married."
On December 1, as battle raged in the skies above London, John and Maisie tied the knot.
"We stepped out of the church and were showered with empty cartridges. We looked up and overhead there was a Spitfire chasing a German Messerschmitt ME109. That's how our marriage began."
The young couple moved to New Zealand in 1944 after John was offered a job.
"I said my only condition was that I could bring my wife and 6-month-old baby. They said that was ridiculous so I said never mind.
"They then came back to me and agreed. Maisie was happy. What young woman wouldn't want the chance to see the world - she was adventurous."
The young family lived in Auckland before buying a hill country farm between Paeroa and Waihi.
"It was a beautiful situation. We knew nothing about farming but we just bought a couple of books and learned about it.
"Maisie was very receptive to anything to do with open country and animals. She was always adaptable, I was fortunate she had a superior IQ too a lot," John said.
She later became the family's only world champion, gaining the title for wool spinning.
"It was around 1980, mum spun a length of thread that reached 378m before it broke," Tony said.
"She was very artistic too, she used the wool, dyed it, and create landscape pictures."
Tony said his mother was a "truly lovely woman" who was always there to help people in trouble.
"If we ever had a problem, we would go to mum and she would sort it. She never complained, she was always happy to help. She touched so many people's lives," he said.
"Maisie was always a bit behind John; he was the one to take the lead, but Maisie was an intelligent, caring, progressive woman. She was a true lady, a true delight," Lynne said.
John said he and Maisie had created a lifetime of beloved memories.
"The biggest thing I will miss is having her arms around me."
A service will be held at the Rotorua Crematorium chapel on Tuesday from 11am.