S3 - EP26- Zoe Flory on colon cancer, camping kit and the contradictions of widowhood

In this episode Rosie Moss is joined by Zoe Flory, who shares the story of her late partner Patrick from their whirlwind first meeting in a Brighton pub to navigating his terminal cancer diagnosis to raising their daughter Addie after his death.With unflinching honesty and flashes of humour, Zoe speaks about the reality of becoming a full-time caregiver, the heartbreak of watching Patrick fade under the weight of cancer and Lynch syndrome, and the extraordinary tenderness that carried them through.Zoe recalls the messy, magical, and devastating moments: draining fluid from Patrick’s lungs at home, creating “daddy magic” rituals for their toddler, and choosing a pub-style wake over the cremation she wasn’t ready for. She talks openly about preparing a young child for loss, using imaginative metaphors like “Daddy lives on the moon” to help Addie find comfort.Now living in a platonic co-parenting arrangement with a close friend, Zoe reflects on parenting through grief, reclaiming her own identity, and the contradictions of widowhood where love, loss, exhaustion and laughter all collide.This conversation is a reminder that grief is never simple, caregiving is never easy, and yet new forms of family and meaning can grow in the wake of heartbreak.