Twenty years have passed since Lady Diana Spencer, or rather
Princess Di’s tragic passing. The car accident was brutal and unnerving. I
still remember how shaken I was to learn about it. I was only 17 years old at
the time, and I was not really fascinated with “The Royals”. I was so busy
studying for the SAT tests, figuring out which college I was going to attend.
But her sudden death was Breaking News then, and even I paid attention. I
remember telling my mother that “Diana had passed away”, and my mother cried.
She thought I was talking about someone at our church. When I mentioned “Princess”
Diana to clarify, she sighed with relief, but only briefly, only to sob again.
The epic car accident along the Paris, France tunnel was
just stunning for how arbitrary it was. It also showcased the bitter irony of
the unsatisfied media which had embossed and promoted Diana’s beauty as well as
her controversy. As a result of their relentless pursuit to photograph the
princess, they would in turn hound her to her death—literally. What a crime
that the photographers, known at that time as paparazzi, had done to our beloved Princess Di!
Twenty years later, the world still misses her. I still
remember the lady in a grey sweater, crouched on her knees before the
well-guarded Buckingham palace, sobbing uncontrollably in grief. The fields of
flowers outside the palace and ribbons of mourning around London, the
country—and even the world—are unforgettable, too.
What was it about Princess Diana’s tragic death on August 31,
1997 that gripped the world so strongly, and that still holds us to this day?
She had indeed captivated the world, but with a warmth that was glorious,
astounding, and irreplaceable. She was a darling person. Everyone wanted to see
her, to know her. She was glamorous, but also so available, approachable. She
cared about others, and she applied her grace and charisma to causes which
others would have shunned. Diana would make them important and mainstream.
She brought two beautiful children into the world, particularly
Prince William, who carries himself with a particular honor and daring
reminiscent of his long-departed mother. She cared for her children in public,
but not with a severe concern for public opinion. Who else could love their
children with such glowing abandon?
Although born into minor aristocracy, she was not born a
royal. She became one, and she continued to live like one, even after the
bitter divorce from Prince Charles. Diana represented the Cinderella fantasy,
which later became reality, and sparked a sense of honor for those who honored
her. “I may not have the same distinction as she, but it could happen”, some
women would ponder. More importantly, though, she treated us common people with
great dignity, as if we were peers in her kingdom. There is no greater honor
than to receive glory from one who is already glorious. Like the other royals—to the extent that the
public was informed—she did carry on an affair just as her husband had done,
but she avoided the perverse philandering of her peers and in-laws. She was not
bawdy or brutal, and she spent more time granting attention to others rather
than to herself.
Twenty years later, we are still talking about Diana. Yet for
all the charm she carried, it still doesn’t make sense why the press is so
pressed to impress the world about her. One article even outlines for
the Millennial generation what they need to know about her, who would have
never known about her if not for the relentless press coverage she still
receives. Why such lavish attention paid to a former princess who passed away
two decades ago?
Like former President Barack Obama, Diana Spencer was a
media creation, too—something she clearly disliked throughout her life,
especially into her later years following the very public divorce with Prince
Charles. In fact, the ravenous paparazzi who had pursued her, captured her
likeness, and elicited her ire—would induce her sad demise. That abusive arrangement
had started out well between the press and her highness. Her marriage to Prince
Charles in 1981, who was then 33 while she was only 19, turned into a
world-wide spectacle as 750 million people watched the event. Even Americans
watched the pageantry, staying up into the wee hours of the morning since the
ceremony was held 9 hours ahead. Throughout her private as well as public
career, the photographers stalked her and displayed her for the public. The
media’s obsession certainly frustrated her loving heart. Once, she vigorously
confronted a cameraman to leave her alone—for the sake of her children. Such
forceful grace made her all the more captivating to us.
Unlike Obama, however, she had a story, a life worth
following, worth telling, and worthy of retelling. What kind of woman was Diana,
that commanded such attention, which brought such admiration? She was indeed
very beautiful. Her calm gaze, her whimsy engaged people. She was down-to-earth
as a noblewoman, and then as a monarch-in-waiting. Isn’t that what so many
people want in their leaders? She cared about common people. She reached out to
them without a sense of burdened condescension. This time, though, the fairy
tale of a kind princess who steals the hearts of all was true, only made more
poignant by her tragic, unnecessary death. In a cynical sense, the press
resurrects her memory because they profit from her death as they had done while
she lived. Nevertheless, we are blessed to remember her.
Diana was fun, a real life to behold, not afraid to face
challenges publicly, and to do so in such a royal fashion. Her classy disdain
of pomp and circumstance following her divorce confirmed that her heart had
always been in the right place: for the people. And for that, she did indeed
deserve to be the Queen
of People’s Hearts. Good night, sweet princess. Rest in Peace.
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