Goodbye, England's Rose

[poliphilo]

We just passed by the anniversary of Princess Diana's death.

Nobody made any fuss about it.

This is a new century and we have concerns of our own- thank you very much.

Diana has joined all those other royal beauties who briefly lit up the night and then departed, leaving nothing behind.

Princess Alexandra, anyone? "The sea King's daughter from over the sea?" Anyone remember her?

At the time I piously collected all the newspapers with stories about the accident and the funeral and stashed them away in a bottom drawer. "Some day," I told myself, "these will be of great historical interest."

Seems like I was wrong.

I had a major clear-out last year and they all went in the bin.

Mais ou sont les neiges d'antan.

Comments

[jackiejj.livejournal.com]

The night Diana died,
I called my sister:
Turn on CNN!

There was no information!
It drove us crazy!

For over an hour
I thought those
dumb mannikens
in the hospital lobby
were real people,
their smiles frozen in place.

(The nurse had her arms out.
I thought that was weird.)

I thought they were security,
to keep out the press.

While I waited
(I knew what was coming),
I remembered Di's wedding:

the train on her gown,
her fairytale carriage.

She was so pretty.

Two weeks ago
our choir sang the anthem
sung at her wedding
(not for nostalgia:
because of the psalm).

Let all the people
praise Thee, O God.
Let all the people praise Thee.

She was so pretty.

And wild! She was wild
under her hats.

(I loved it that
her mother-in-law
didn't know how on earth
to handle that girl.)