Seeing THE Dress

Seeing the family jewels was lovely.  

The Spencer women had some serious sparkle.

Seeing her school uniform, trunk and report cards was special.

Also seeing her photo albums from her past - which she put together herself - was quite enjoyable.

 Seeing her tap shoes and ballet shoes was poignant.

Her height made it difficult to continue on the path of a dancer. One day, though, she would get to dance with John Travolta!

Seeing her home movies from childhood was mesmerizing.

Who would ever guess that this gangley, long-legged young girl with dripping wet hair and a bathing suit strap slipping off her shoulder would become known around the world one day?

Seeing her courtship progress was a story remembered by many.

Seeing her many acts of charity was heart-warming.

Seeing the garments we recognized in print media and video
(here in actuality) was one of those

moments of I-can't believe-it-is-right here in front-of-me.

There are actually 28 of her garments on display. 

But the most mind-boggling of all was

Seeing THE dress she wore on her wedding day on July 29, 1981; beautiful and bittersweet.

Seeing this DIANA a celebration exhibit at the Putnam Museum in Davenport, Iowa (September 14 - January 5) 

was made even better by being with my sister!   

We made a road trip out of it and stayed at the

beautifully restored historic Blackhawk Hotel right near the flowing Mississippi River.

Meaning that we, too, felt like royalty as we visited royalty.

What is it about the story of Diana that resonates with so many?  I think that it is a story of imperfection that we can relate to - she certainly wasn't perfect and had issues of parental divorce, self-image and eating disorders and betrayal/infidelity to contend with in a very public way.  It is a story of a woman who fiercely loved her sons

 while being loathed by many in her "new" family.  It is a story of going out to see society throw-aways with terrible illnesses and afflictions.  It is a story of moving forward once her marriage was over, and a story of a life cut off much too soon - never being able to hug a new daughter-in-law and cuddle a new baby grandson.

Shouldst you choose to make the 3 hour drive to Davenport, know you won't be disappointed.

It is a memory made that I don't think I can ever forget seeing THE dress and remembering 

a life lived with much public scrutiny yet smiling through a great portion of it.