The Very Best Thing In the World?--A Tragic Twist

My trip to Africa back in September included a layover in Paris for one day. We arrived early in the morning on Monday and we had roughly half a day to "hit the highlights. For us, that meant the Triumphant Arch, the Eiffel Tower, and the Louvre. So, we set off on our adventure. We traveled by bus, then walked, to the Arch first and took the obligatory pictures. Next, we made the long walk to the Louvre. After a whirlwind tour of that famous museum, we set our sights on the Eiffel Tower.

By the time we got off the bus a few blocks from the tower, it was getting to be late afternoon. We walked down a sidewalk, looking up at the tower, wondering how we were going to get to the other side amidst the fast-moving traffic. The two youngest in our group of four had their answer quickly: the traffic cleared briefly, and they ran across the broad street, just in front of the speeding traffic. My friend Dennis found his chance and made it to the middle of the road, was stuck for a moment, then went on across the street. Sure that I was slower than those three, I decided to make my way back up the street and walk across the overpass.

As I approached the overpass, I noticed a crowd there. They were gathered around what I now know as the "Flame of Liberty." [Side note: the Flame of Liberty is an exact copy of the flame held in the hand of the Statue of Liberty--that statue, remember, was a gift from France. I was so intent on catching up to my friends that I did not notice what it was. I still did not know it until much later, after my return home. I have pictures of it, though!] As I looked at the crowd, I noticed flowers and a picture at the base--a picture of Princess Diana. I suddenly realized that that overpass covered the tunnel where she was killed. As I returned to my friends, I announced my discovery and my photographs.

Now, to the significance of the story: Diana was one of the most famous people of her day. Even now, people remember her clearly: She was famous, fabulously wealthy, yet lonely and abandoned by her husband, Prince Charles. It had long been the case, since her marriage to Charles, that she was pursued relentlessly by journalists and paparazzi. Of course, at the time of her death, she was divorced and dating another man--still "big news." Some even think that someone may have been pursuing them for a picture at the time of the accident.

Isn't it interesting that Diana died tragically--in many ways a victim of her celebrity status and that of her ex-husband--yet a poll conducted in her country found that many children under 10 years of age think that being a celebrity is "the very best thing in the world."

How sad.