June 2019 – Whittlesey Wordsmiths

Diana Flowers Maxwell Hamilton Creative Commons — The sea of flowers outside Buckingham Palace (Picture Credit Maxwell Hamilton Creative Commons)

This piece is Written by Val Fish another of our very talented prize-winning authors.

This was written for a challenge to imagine yourself at a famous event in history.

In my case, I didn’t need to imagine, I was there…

Diana

I woke up around six am, after for the first time in my life sleeping on the pavement.

It was the 6^th September 2007, the day etched in history when the whole world said a sad goodbye to Princess Diana.

A friend and I had come down the night before and as we walked down the Mall that evening I remember the sweet fragrance permeating from the thousands of flowers laid along the route.

We’d managed to nab a prime spot right in front of the railings. As the clock ticked on that morning, the mood amongst the crowd began to change, I think we were all still in disbelief as to what we were about to witness.

The realisation hit us when we heard the sound of approaching horses’ hooves, that’s when the wailing started.

The sight of that cortege will stay with me forever, the bouquet of lilies on the coffin, the boys with their heads bowed. I remember thinking ‘We shouldn’t be there, this should be private, that’s their mother.’

It was impossible not to cry…

diana_funeral_02 Dave Chancellor — The coffin carried in (Picture credit Dave Chancellor)

The service was relayed on a loud speaker; the crying now was more subdued, and as the choir began to sing ‘Libera Me’ from Verdi’s Requiem, I thought it was the most beautiful sound I’d ever heard.

And then it was over and once again the cortege passed us, this time the coffin in a car, and everybody was throwing flowers.

And then she was gone…

I felt almost honoured to have been there that day; I was one in a million.

I was part of history.

Later this year Wendy will be sharing her long-awaited autobiography with the world. The publication is planned for September and work on the nuts and bolts of getting the book ready to face its readers, on time, is well underway.

The book is beautifully written, evocative of a time now past and Whittlesey a place much changed. Those of us who travelled along different paths but during the same time will recognise and remember the many experiences we all shared.

Unfortunately, her mentor and friend Edward Storey died as Wendy was finishing her book, he did, however, comment on it earlier, “we share Wendy’s journeys and experiences, her descriptions are so vivid we are there with her, sitting by her side.”

This is a first glimpse of the book’s cover, it may change a little before publication but this is it at the moment. There will be further posts once we have a price and firm publication date.

Month: June 2019

Diana

The Railway Carriage Child