The Royal Wedding, Minus One

I woke up early, as I do every morning, but this morning I watched the Royal Wedding. Prince William marries Kate Middleton Wilt. She looked beautiful. West Minister Abbey is spectacular. The ceremony very traditional and proper, as you would expect. The couple rarely smiled throughout. It seemed very solemn, but after they left the church and got into their horse drawn carriage, they were beaming. I heard the cost of the wedding was 55 million and that did not include some additional expenses, which I cannot remember. The bride’s parents were allowed to contribute $165,000. The couple has three new titles bestowed on them by the Queen, including the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge. As I sit here watching, for over an hour, only one thing comes to my mind. With one a million people there, and all the pomp and circumstance and extravagance, there is one thing missing…Princess Diana.

Diana should have been there today to see her son marry. Her death was tragic. I remember the day I heard of her accident in Paris on August 31, 1997. I turned on the radio and could not believe what I was hearing. It affected me deeply for some reason which I could not understand. I never followed her life or took any interest in the royal family. I could not help but be captivated by her fairytale wedding in July, 1981. She was a beautiful bride. I was just starting to plan my own wedding, and watching the wedding of all weddings was amazing. She gave birth to William in 1982 and Prince Harry in 1984. I guess I related to her somewhat because we were going through similar life experiences. I married in 1983 and had two girls in 1987 and 1990. I always heard about how she wanted to teach her boys to be aware of the suffering of others and took them with her to do charitable work. I admired her for her humanitarian works, she was a princess and didn’t have to walk through the minefields of Angola. She brought attention to so many causes worldwide.

One day I heard about her marital problems. I started paying more attention. In 1995 she was interviewed and responded to all the rumors that had been circulating for years. I found it heart breaking how she spoke of three people being in her marriage from the beginning. She said, even as she walked down the aisle, that her gut was telling her this wasn’t right, but felt powerless to stop it. She spoke of how she loved Charles, but he never gave up on Parker Bowles. It was plain to see that she was being honest. She was hurt and sickened over what was done to her. She won my sympathy and compassion. I felt the royal family and Charles, took this young girl of 19, and swept her off her feet just so she could produce heirs to the throne. When her job was done, she was discarded, like an old dish rag. Charles went about his business with his mistress and the royal family never really gave her the respect and love she deserved. It struck me as being so sad.

When I heard the news of her death, my heart broke on the spot. She was so young and beautiful. She was tricked in to a marriage and robbed of the best years of her life. She had two young boys 15 and 13, that she could not finish raising. In my mind, Charles and his family had killed her. But for them, she would not have been out being chased by the paparazzi. She would have been home, with her family, where she belonged.

I spent the 31^st of August, 1997, crying and even sobbing at times. No one knew what was wrong with me. I couldn’t explain it. My heart was broken for her and for her children. I have never been that affected by the death of someone I didn’t know. But, Diana had touched my heart and her death had broken it.

So, while today is a happy day for her son and I am happy for him, I cannot help but think of his mother. As a mother, I cry for her today because she was robbed of this occasion and so many others. I know she is watching from heaven, but she should have been there today.

May God Bless Prince William and Kate and I am sure they will be assigned a special angel, in Diana, to watch over them.