What a privilege

I am so glad I made it to Central London on Wednesday and stood for over two hours in this spot at Horseguards Parade.  They were 3-deep in front of me but I manage to see through the gaps between their shoulders to get a reasonable view. It felt great to be part of the atmosphere and to partake in such an historic event. By the time the procession started they were 8-deep behind me.

Suddenly we could hear bells tolling and cannon gunfire, so we knew the procession had started and after about 20 minutes, the procession passed by.

Then Her Majesty's coffin came into view. You could hear a pin drop, the crowd was so respectful. The soldiers were playing the very mournful funeral march.

All too soon, the procession passed through Horseguards Parade on its way to Whitehall and Westminster Hall. I was so pleased to be part of that historical moment.  If you zoom in to the left of the photo below you can see the Queen's children walking behind the coffin.

Elizabeth the Great

HM Queen Elizabeth II
1926-2022

 
I feel totally bereft with the news that our lovely Queen Elizabeth II has died. We all knew it was  coming but just hoped that she would be somehow immortal or at least give us a few more years of her radiance. Two days before her death yesterday she was pictured shaking hands with the new Prime Minister Liz Truss. She looked frail, thin and had quite heavy bruising on her hand, but her smile and cheekiness was still there. How is it possible that two days later she was snuffed out like a candle flame in a breeze?

The wall-to wall TV coverage on all main channels last night showed just how much she was revered. There were scenes of predominantly young people who flocked to Buckingham Palace in the pouring rain to soak up the atmosphere of grief, showing that it was like their favourite granny had died. 

For me, the most poignant footage was the rainbow over Windsor Castle. The sky wept for her and the heavens built a bridge for her. God bless you, Ma'am. You served us well.

picture courtesy of ftw.usatoday.com