Three and a half years later, we returned to England. After a short stay at my grandparents' house in Glasgow, we went to Durham. My father Leo has found a new job in the law school of the local university, and he is studying for a lawyer's qualification and starting to practice. He also took an active part in the activities of the local Conservative Party. Since we returned to China, my father has had political ambitions. He is very good at communicating with people and can express his ideas in an interesting and charming way. Everything seems to be going well for my father. But at the age of 42, he had a stroke. Father is in the heyday of his career, which is a fatal blow to him.
For us, the happy time of childhood came to an abrupt end. My mother has brought a heavy burden to this family. I remember Tony was very patient with his sick father and tried his best to serve him. People often analyze the influence of his father's stroke on Tony. Many people say that the father's ambition was passed on to his son, but the problem is far from simple. Five or six years later, my mother was diagnosed with thyroid cancer, and five years later, my mother died. In my opinion, these circumstances together gave Tony the motivation to succeed. His mother's death affected him as much as his father's stroke.
Hazel's mother is quite different from her father in almost every respect. My father grew up with my foster mother, and my mother comes from a stable family with many relatives. She is smart and modest, and is the backbone of the family. However, she doesn't like socializing and doesn't value ambition and success. She values real values, such as family and friendship.
I think people often underestimate the influence of mother on Tony. Tony inherited many excellent qualities from his father, especially his initiative and ability, as well as his decision-making ability. But Tony has formed a different world view since he was very young. He respects his father, but he doesn't necessarily agree with his views. The two often talk on the phone. My father had another stroke at the age of 70, and now he can't say much. However, father and son can still communicate well.
Quick thinking is better than expression.
Nick Ryden, a lawyer and Tony's high school friend, was 13 years old when Tony and I met, when we were studying at Fitis College in Edinburgh. We became good friends and have been close ever since. At that time, Tony was keen on debate and performance. There was no sign that he would become a great man in the future, but the skills of performance and debate were crucial to any successful politician. He is sincere and considerate and has a talent for acting. He is quick-witted and expressive enough to argue with others.
This school is like an independent kingdom, which seems isolated from the world. After coming in, it is equivalent to cutting off contact with family and former friends. The school system is very old-fashioned, and it is largely the survival of the fittest. The only fun is to laugh at and escape from the system. Tony often jokes about this system.
I like reading a lot of books.
Tony's neighbor Katie Kay (who has known Blair for 20 years and is now his special adviser) moved to Hackney in the 1980s, where we met the Blair couple and soon became close friends, visiting each other and sometimes having dinner together. Later, the two families began to go on holiday together, either to Italy or to France. What impressed me deeply is that Tony loves reading. He likes to sit quietly and read the Bible and other serious books. He also likes to sit outside the yard and talk to passers-by for hours.
Tony is a lark, not an owl. He likes going to bed early and getting up early. He usually gets up at dawn, puts his eldest son, who is only a few months old, on the children's gymnastics rack and sits beside him drinking coffee and reading. When we got up and went out, he had been up for four hours.
Good at communication but not fighting.
Tony Blair, Blair's political colleague, Charlie falcone (they used to be lawyers together and now work in Blair's government), has basically not changed since we met in the late 1960s. He is a sociable person. Incredibly, he is not aggressive, overbearing in conversation, and doesn't shout when expressing his views. His persuasiveness is amazing. Tony is very confident, but not arrogant. He is ambitious and very attractive.
Unlike Thatcherite politicians, they never impose their will on others and give orders to others, but convince others by reasoning. I never thought that he would become prime minister. As he is not so aggressive, he will spend a lot of time looking for relevant facts, and once he finds a solution, he will put it into practice.
He has always paid great attention to protecting his family and tried to avoid causing too much concern and interference to his family. However, this kind of thing is inevitable. Danthony was in great pain when he saw his wife Cherie attacked by the media. She was attacked because her husband was the prime minister. Tony could hardly stand up for her.