Lessons in Grief – Part 5

I woke up this morning to a notification on my phone.  The royal family had been summoned to Balmoral Castle as Queen Elizabeth was under “medical supervision”. 

It brought me straight back to the morning last March when I got a similar summons.  Off and on all morning, memories of the panic to book flights and the dread of the next few days surfaced.  Signing into the hospital for the End of Life ward.  Feeding The Mom orange sherbet.  Too much emotion to process.

When the announcement came later in the morning that the Queen had died, though her death wasn’t totally unexpected, it was a shock because she’d been on her feet, greeting Liz Truss, the new Prime Minister, on Tuesday. 

I turned on ABC News, because I knew they’d be breaking in with a special report.  And the whole time I watched, I missed The Mom even more because she would have been glued to her tv, too.  She admired the Queen and loved watching documentaries on the Royal Family.  I sent her all The Crown DVD’s.  I’d love to hear what she’d have to say about King Charles III.  He’d never been one of her favorites and she never held back on her opinions! 😊

All the talk this morning of the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee reminded me that we’d been in England during the Silver Jubilee in 1977.  Although I don’t recall participating in any actual Jubilee events, there wasn’t a shop window, street banner or magazine that didn’t trumpet the Queen’s 25^th Anniversary on the throne.  We visited in May but the bigger events weren’t scheduled until June. 

Here are a couple of Jubilee souvenirs and a few pics of The Mom enjoying our trip.

A folder of all the Jubilee events by date

A menu from our British Airways flight (back when they actually served you a decent meal!)

Two of the menu pages

The Mom in our rental car.  She actually loved driving on the left.  She said it felt more natural and had a much harder time getting used to driving on the right again than she had adapting to the left.

I think this is Piccadilly Circus.

Blenheim Palace, ancestral home of Winston Churchill.

I can just imagine The Mom and the Queen in Heaven, mingling their spirits and sharing their thoughts on life, their children and being thoroughly badass women!  Miss you, Ma!