The Commonwealth was rocked last week by the sudden yet peaceful passing of Her Majesty, Queen Elizabeth II, the UK's longest-serving monarch.
Her death touched people across the world in more ways than many thought possible. A cherished sovereign, she was largely ‘untouchable’, indeed it had to be a very special occasion for one to catch a glimpse of the Queen, let alone meet her.
Yet, she found a way into many hearts, whether through her unwavering dedication to duty, her bravery as a teenager during World War II, or her candid love of photography. As we saw recently in her famous Paddington Bear encounter, or her role in the 2012 London Olympics where James Bond escorted Her Majesty to the Opening Ceremony, she had quite the sense of humour.
For me personally, she reminded me of my grandmother, both in looks and mannerisms. A few years ago, I put two photos of two women in their twenties on Facebook and asked my friends to ‘guess the Queen’. One photo was of Queen Elizabeth II and the other was my grandmother. Most people chose the photo of my grandmother as the Queen, their likeness was quite uncanny.
It's the beginning of a new chapter for Australia and its relationship with the monarchy. In this edition on page 3 we talk about what the Queen’s death means for Australians.
One thing is for certain, a reign like hers could never be repeated.
Amanda
