The moment I knew: I’d never had romantic feelings for a man – then he touched my hand and it felt electric

‘Tyler has rescued me more than once. I feel so very lucky that we crossed paths’: Tyler (left) with Jim Rogers (right), dementia advocate and author, in 2026. Photograph: Rob Palmer

In the mid 90s, I was in the prime of my life. I was in my early 30s, married to my soul mate, Lorna, with three kids under three. We’d emigrated from our small town in Worcestershire in the UK to Perth, and life was wonderful. Then Lorna was diagnosed with melanoma. We returned to England and less than a year later she was gone. It was completely unbelievable, as though someone had just come along and smashed my life into a million pieces.

The following months were a blur: I was a grief-stricken widower and newly single parent struggling to keep the kids’ life on track and my own head above water. As time went on, it was obvious I wasn’t doing well and my parents insisted on treating me to a holiday in the sun. I didn’t want to go.