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FRIDAY, 5 SEPTEMBER 1997  -  Washington, DC

Copyright 1997 AOUDECorp
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 The mood in Washington is somber at best, as the world comes to terms with the fact that Diana, the Princess of Wales passed away this past Sunday morning due to injuries sustained in a car accident early Sunday morning in Paris.

For the majority of her seventeen years as the Princess of Wales, Diana was a Royal Highness, but when she lost her title due to divorce from the Prince Charles, the Prince of Wales last year, the Princess perhaps became even more revered in the minds of the people, her people.

With her death, we remember a shy young girl who was flung upon the world stage and given little help to swim.  Though she suffered personally, the Princess rarely gave any indication to the public that she was unhappy.  More importantly to her, she wanted to make sure that others were happy - be they small school children at an Army base, people suffering the maladies of AIDS, leprosy or poverty and most recently the weapons of war.

Along the way, the Princess had an unintended effect upon the world - she charmed them!  Prince Charles was simply looking for a pretty face and producer of heirs to the British throne.  He got that and much more than he ever imagined.  Diana arguably became the most photographed woman in the world.  Her image could sell magazines and tabloids instantly, not to mention bolster British Trade and perhaps most notably, fashion.

The Princess took exception to being called a clothes horse in the mid-eighties and worked tirelessly to overcome that perception.  Diana did so quite effectively, so much so that she has become the "Queen of People's Hearts", whom it doesn't hurt to look smashing in the latest Versace gown.

Diana, the Princess of Wales lost many things through her marriage and divorce to the Prince of Wales.  She lost her private identity, much of her self-esteem and confidence and at points even her will to live.  After the loss of her title and the dissolution of her marriage, she finally gained some of herself back.  It also seemed as if she may finally found a loving, romantic figure in her life.  That is when tragedy strikes, especially in the pen of the great Bard William Shakespeare.
 

 So the uncommon Princess passed away in a most common manner, a fatal automobile accident, an event that claimed the lives of 250 Americans during the same weekend.  As families will mourn the loss of their loved ones, the world will mourn the loss of a remarkable women.  She had overcome eating disorders, rabid criticism from the public and her own family, a bitter divorce and the challenges of being a single mother.  Her simple smile and her simple gestures endeared her to millions the world over.  Her simple act of caring for others and her simple beauty has made her much larger in death than she ever was in life. 

Diana will get her wish to become "Queen of Peoples' Hearts".  As the grief of her death gains momentum, she will be revered as a saint, something she never imagined as the frightened young bride seventeen years ago and something the Prince of Wales never feared, even in his wildest nightmares. 

As we sally forth to the new century, we leave behind an extraordinary woman, who represented class, compassion, glamour and true humanity, but we'll always carry her in our hearts and our minds. 
Excerpt from Elton John’s “Candle in the Wind 1997”
This torch we'll always carry
for our nations' golden child.
And even though we try, the truth brings us to tears;
all our words cannot express
the joy you brought us through the years.

Goodbye England's Rose
from a country lost without your soul
who'll miss the wings of your compassion
more than you'll ever know.

Anthony Aoude for 
AMA Entertainment News © 1997