“A 14 hour queue? Queen was like a grandmother - so we’ll wait”said a woman in London. People are lined up for over five miles to pay their respects to Queen Elizabeth II after her death. She has been eulogized by heads of state, world wide media and grieved by people all over the world like me and possibly you. Do you remember the outpouring of grief for JFK in 1963, Princess Di in 1997 or Whitney Houston in 2012? It’s called public grief for “we knew them”, perhaps not as a family member, close friend or colleague but they were part of our lives. And it’s normal to grieve their deaths.

According to Dominic Green, a fellow of the Royal Historical Society ”…her measured words and quiet deeds made the queen the most recognizable person in human history.”

We can learn from Queen Elizabeth’s legacy. And from the queen herself in a speech, “We are just passing through. Our purpose here is just to observe, to learn, to love and then we return home.”

“May her memory be for a blessing”

-Harriet