Her Majesty The Queen: Thank You Ma'am
Ahead of Her Majesty The Queen's state funeral on Monday, Nub News writer Deven Thakeria shares his thoughts after our late monarch's death.
"The Queen died" says my dad on a video call.
"What! She can't die, she's the Queen" I gasp.
The internet connection has been playing up, I couldn't hear him and the screen froze. I couldn't even wack on the TV because I don't have one.
Uncomfortable in my own company, I headed into town, ploughing through a packet of crisps for relief. I got signal and my dad's words were confirmed.
The traffic lights still turned and the day still became night. I sought mirrors on the faces of others, but struggled to gauge the guarded.
The next morning I scoured the same streets and sat on a bench in Hitchin Market Place. Life still flowed but the current was off, or was that just me?
The memorial plaque was up at the flagpole. Some walked by oblivious, others glimpsed along their way. A few paused and took photos, selfies even, and there were those who laid flowers and bowed their heads.
I hear the words echo, "this is the end of an era". I agree, at the same time however, ideologies outlive individuals.
She was placed on centre stage for a role she didn't audition for. I imagine it not so easy when the stage set and audience constantly evolve.
Yet she held it together. I wonder if it was the moment when her lead support left her side that her will wavered?
This though is not something that even the finest royal doctors could diagnose as a cause.
When one plays a role for so long, how does one be anything else? Like millions of others she too lived a parallel life, particularly as a partner, a parent and a grandparent.
Grandparents often bind families, so what now for the royal family and the extended family, us as a nation?
May these sensitive times be soothed by solidarity rather than exposed by family feuds, but this is wishful thinking.
Whether we see the Queen and the monarchy as an anchor or an oppressor, or whatever that may be simmering, it is perhaps a reflection of our own stories.
This bench is too uncomfortable to be sat on for so long, it's time to move on with my day. I think the Queen would have wanted that.
Thank you ma'am.
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