This weekend was a great weekend to be British. It was the Diamond Jubilee of our Queen, Elizabeth II. There was coverage of it here in the US, but the reason behind the celebration I think was lost on many. Elizabeth II is only the second monarch in Britain's history to reach this point - 60 years on the throne. It's an incredible achievement and definitely worth celebrating.
At 27 years old, I can't imagine the feeling of being alive for 60 years. It seems so distant. A marriage that lasts 60 years is an achievement. Depending on the length of someone's life, even the most devoted and loving couples don't always reach 60 years of marriage. So the thought of having the same job for that length of time is incredible.
At all the celebrations, the Queen looked healthy and happy. My husband pointed out that she looked like a little girl, filled with excitement, during the river pageant. It was wonderful to see all the Union Jacks flying, everyone cheering and singing the national anthem. It was in short, very moving.
And here I was on the other side of the world from all the celebration. So I did the best I could. My husband was away until Sunday, so I set about being British on my own. I spent a ridiculous amount of money on some Union Jack bunting from an import shop and hung them proudly, zigzagging across our front door. Saturday night I watched some comedy gold: Morecambe and Wise, Gavin and Stacey, Peter Kay, Michael McIntyre, John Bishop. Sunday morning I had the pageant on the telly as I baked a Victoria Sponge and decorated it with toothpicks that had carefully drawn flags wrapped around them. The weekend finished with a pitcher of Pimm's and a barbeque with my husband and my father-in-law.
It was a wonderful weekend and the celebrations really did remind me of why it is called GREAT Britain.
