Tale 44 - The Queen

 In 1977, I was 8 years old. 

It was the Queens Silver Jubilee. 

There were street parties and lots of royal events in school. 

I remember all of us getting a Silver Jubilee coin, which my grandma put in her ‘special glass cabinet’ that every grandma of the 1970s had!

My most vivid memory of Silver Jubilee year though was a poetry competition. All the school were asked to take part, and I remember winning a pencil sharpener! 

All the poems were put on display, and I remember one in particular - it stuck with me.

‘The Queen,

She rides in a very nice coach, 

And on her dress she wears a brooch,

She waves to everyone for hours and hours,

With a smile like a meadow of beautiful flowers.’

I can’t remember if I wrote it or if it was another student. It has stuck with me though for over 45 years, and always comes in my head when I see the Queen.

Hard working and kind.

Yesterday, for the first time in my life, all of my four children spoke to me individually about the same subject. The Queen.

The Prince of Charms was concerned how her death would change things. The Queen had always been there. A constant. 

The Gucci Princess was sad. She wanted to know the house we once visited that belonged to the Queen. It was Sandringham, and I’m glad we visited so the Gucci Princess had her own piece of the Queen.

The Sassy Princess asked how she died, and we spoke of old age and how it changes the body over the years.

The Prince of Tales asked why she died. When I explained old age again he shook his head. He wanted to know why she had chosen to die now.

I think in his head the Queen was immortal, a superhero who had the power to choose when she left this life. 

Maybe she was? 

In 1977, Elvis Presley died. 

I remember the news at the time  reporting;

‘The King of Rock ‘n’ Roll and the most famous man on earth is dead.’

In 2022, whether you are a royalist or not, there is a real argument, especially in these social media times, that;

“The most famous woman to have ever lived on earth is dead.”

RIP Queen Elizabeth ll - the woman with a smile like a meadow of beautiful flowers.