I will never forget the 8th of September, 2022 -
the day that I and the entire nation of Great Britain
mourned the passing of
Queen Elizabeth the second...
it had been raining on and off all day -
and for some reason when I heard
that members of the Royal Family
were rushing to be by The Queen's side
I had a feeling that we soon may be
witnessing the end of her reign.

When it was announced that The Queen
had died,
I must admit that I and my family did indeed cry -
because we had lived with The Queen
all our lives,
and she had always been
like a grandmother to our entire nation
whose image we had seen and carried with us
wherever we went and whenever we needed
to use some physical pounds and pence.

Things will never be the same again...
now King Charles III will take
his mother's place as the head of state...
now when we sing the national anthem
we will have to say "God Bless The King"
instead of "God Bless The Queen"...
this year The Queen celebrated having
spent 70 years on the throne -
70 years in which she showed true strength,
grace, regality, and a sense of duty
to her people and the country that she loved...
Queen Elizabeth II and I shared the same birthday -
the 21st of April -
and though we were not at all close in age
I always considered the fact that we were born
on the same day and the same month
to be something special to me, for some reason.

It is the end of an era...
it is the end of what is it being referred to
as the "second Elizabethan Age"...
it is the end of one reign
and the beginning of another -
but no matter what happens going forwards
nothing will be the same...
it is with a deep and profound sense of sadness
that I must write about the death
of a woman who was inspiring
and influential to so many people
in so many ways for seven decades -
and even though I was never lucky enough
to get the chance to meet The Queen personally,
I will always remember her as being
someone who every year I wanted
to watch the Christmas message of,
someone who personified
the importance of obligation,
pride, duty, legacy, and family -
which is why I will always think
fondly of The Queen, Elizabeth II,
Her Majesty.