
She stands at the railings in her tartan coat,
Her shopping trolley pulled behind, her shoes
Scuffed with age and yet she clings
To the iron rails, looking at the window lit
Ready for a broadcast to the nation.
She wonders what it would be like to have
A life played out so publicly, so different
To her own life, lonely now her husband’s gone.
Now all she does is trundle past the palace to
A local Tesco’s where she buys her bread and eggs
And sometimes bags of sugared donuts, a treat
That surely she deserves. She wonders if
The Queen will eat some donuts too,
When she’s feeling sad. She wonders if she is alone
Or if her children gather round. She wonders if
The Queen will need a friend. She needs a friend
And she’d like to meet the Queen, have some tea,
Pat her hand and tell her it’ll all be fine,
Just hold on and give it time.
Margot Kinberg
I really like this perspective! I’m sure there must be plenty of women like that, too. We don’t notice them. They’re anonymous, so their lives don’t play out in the media the way the queen’s does. But in ways, their lives are not that different.
patientandkindlove
I’m sure the Queen wishes that she was much more normal tomorrow. It must be so hard to have your grief displayed for the whole world to see.