Thoughts on the Passing of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II

When I was a little girl, my Grandma always had a picture of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II on her wall. I can vividly remember looking at the picture every time I passed it, enamored with the idea that Queens existed and that was probably where my love of fantasy began. If Kings and Queens existed then why couldn’t unicorns, faeries, and magic exist too? Such are the musings of childhood innocence but deep inside that little question remained and now, quite a number of years later, I immerse myself into fantasy whenever I have the opportunity to read or in the stories I write.
Also, I always connected the Queen with my Grandma, and having now lost them both I feel a bit lost. I haven’t really felt like writing or reading these past few days as though one of the last connections to that childhood wonder and innocence has gone with the passing of Her Majesty.
I know the pages will turn and the words will begin to flow from me again but it seems right to reflect on Her Majesty’s life and the vast impact and influence she had on the world. Her dignity and steadfastness were something I always admired. Imagine everything she experienced and witnessed and all the knowledge and wisdom such a long life provides…How did she manage to keep her opinions to herself? I wouldn’t have been able to.
I know there are many different views on the monarchy as an institution and that for many, pain and struggle, and anger are the feelings that arise at its mention, and I hope that those wounds are someday, and sooner rather than later, healed for you.
For me, I will mourn the loss of my childhood, the Queen who I loved dearly for the connection to my Grandma that she always reminded me of, for the woman who chose a life of service to others over the privacy and freedom of a normal life, and for the steadfast and constant presence in a world of chaos and constant change.