My long-standing friend and former partner Sheila McWattie, who has died suddenly and painlessly from a brain aneurism, aged 58, was driven by her passion for people, her love of language and storytelling and her lesbian feminist politics. Sheila thrived on making a positive difference and her journey is landmarked with much evidence of this. Born in Paisley, to Dorothy and Jim McWattie, Sheila was a passionate and proud Scot. Recently she instigated a gathering of Scottish friends on the eve of the Scottish referendum, arriving at our home, complete with a pot of heather, a tin of shortbread, and of course sharp, intelligent insights in to the pros and cons of becoming independent.