Oddity of Altruism 01 - Diana, Princess of Wales

A Life of Compassion & GoodIntroductionHello, my name is welcome to the Bear of Bad News, I’m your host LorBear, and this is the Bear of Bad News’ Oddity of Altruism. This is a new monthly segment covering one person that has spent a large amount of time or energy trying to create a better world, and create good news. Our first feature is on the late Diana, Princess of Wales, with a combination of segments covering my personal relationship to her and her impact, as well as, articles about her that cover her various life’s works.The stories in this episode are sourced from various news outlets and publications. The Bear of Bad News does not conduct independent fact-checking or verification of these stories. Listeners are encouraged to review original sources for accuracy and complete context. We are not responsible for the accuracy or content of third-party reporting.Diana: A TimelineTo start we will take a retrospective look at her life’s work, from an article by historic-newspapers.com. They already did a better job at this breakdown 10 years ago so we’ll hear how they summarised the life of Diana Spencer, and then continue with some personal stories about her impact, and a deeper dive into specific works.Article:* https://www.historic-newspapers.com/blogs/article/princess-diana-charity-workShe Looked at Me!Princess Diana had a way of making everyone in the room feel like they were personally connected to her, and like they were special, beautiful, and loved. I know this directly, though I never met her, nor saw her with my own eyes. I’m old, but not that old, but my sisters are. At 8 and 11 years old T and S were still almost knee high when Princess Diana came to our small city of Vancouver to open Expo 86.Her and the now King Charles were here to promote the increased access to high speed transit through new partnerships between Canadian and British governments, which had led to the Vancouver Skytrain, a world leader in green transportation, and other transportation initiatives across the province. Over the course of seven days they toured Victoria, Nanaimo, Kamloops, Prince George, and Vancouver. They rode the newly constructed Skytrain from Waterfront to Stadium, I assume they stopped there to get a hotdog from the stadium Costco.During their visit they did a procession at one point where crowds gathered along the sides as watched as they were driven by, waving to the crowds. My mother, pregnant with my sister Kiki, took two young daughters downtown on that same skytrain, having driven to Scott Road Station. It was the last stop on the south side of the bridge, and then they continued on the new accessible high speed rail, using the freshly painted Park’n’ride lot.They stood for hours, in the hot sun of the summer temperature spring day in mid May, and waited, impatiently, for the People’s Princess to arrive. They didn’t remember she was with Charles when they recanted the story to me, aged five, asking why Princess Diana was so great. She was, as they came through, finally, waving to the crowd. Both my sister’s have a different account of what happened next, oddly enough. One claims that as they waved at her, and she looked over to their side of the procession, she looked directly at them, and then smiled at my one sister, specifically, and could not have been looking at anyone else. However, my other sister says the exact same.I still think about that story some days, it will creep into my mind. Fascinating my autistic pattern recognition, trying to figure out which sister she was looking at. I jest. But I do wonder how it would have felt to have coffee with her, or go for a walk in the park with her and talk about the world, or have been raised by her, even if only so briefly.So I can tell you without a doubt that she would have made you feel like the only person in the entire world if you were spending time with her personally, because she could make you feel like that in a crowd of thousands, in the middle of the street. Truly, someone who brought goodness into this world with the simple act of their existence.Articles:* https://stillathing.org/princess-diana-the-transformative-power-of-kindness/* https://www.boomermagazine.com/princess-diana-a-defiant-kindness/The People’s PrincessSomething that often gets said to this day, that people who didn’t see her name in the news weekly might not understand the gravity of, is that she was the People’s Princess. At the time, the royal family was not the same as it is today, and while Queen Elizabeth II was a pioneer in humanising the crown, Diana was the true queen of royal charity and compassion.She was a simple school teacher at heart, who was thrust into the spotlight. But she handled every challenge put forward to her with dignity and grace. To the point that Queen Elizabeth II was said to have worn white to the marriage of Charles and Camilla in a move to keep Camilla from being allowed to wear it, as you cannot wear the same colour as the queen. Reminding the world that Diana came first.But the greatest achievement she ever had was being an amazing mother, without fail, and without hubris. I remember watching her, on the television news. She was running in a school event, like she was simultaneously superwoman, and also just a Mom. The most visible woman in the entire UK, if not the world, had taken off her shoes and stood shoulder to shoulder with all the other mothers for a simple race.It ignited the world. Suddenly, she was not just the People’s Princess, she was also just a mother who wanted her son to be happy. She was a woman, who participated at her son’s school, worked, and went home, like so many millions of others.The photo’s of her in the event, wearing loose clothing, arms spread, and deliriously happy and free, are some of the only ones I remember seeing where she also seemed to not be looking at someone else. She was in her natural habitat, and we were just getting a beautiful, lucky glimpse of her in the wild.I remember one other major photo at the time also held that same spirit of freedom, and that dignified wild streak of defiance. Diana wore a black dress, and had the definition of a cheeky smile on her face. To this day, if you look up Princess Diana’s little black dress, you will see all sorts of pictures of her looking both supremely happy with herself, and beautifully free.She was always the People’s Princess, even if we only knew her as Diana before she was gone.Articles:* https://www.hellomagazine.com/royalty/892294/moment-princess-diana-went-barefoot-prince-harrys-sport-day-still-breaking-internet-35-years-on/A Royal ActivistThat element of humanity extended to her royal work, and her charitable endeavours. She had an amazing capacity for kindness, a grace that rivalled world leaders with years more experience, and legions of support, writers, or just better resources. She threw money at charities that needed it like offering water to a guest, and smiled while saying a soft quip about it being her duty as one of the privileged.She stared down the idea that the world was made up of stratified levels of humanity, being the very first royal to willingly touch someone with aids, and pushing for people with leprosy, and other diseases, to be treated with dignity and respect. She champion people who were less fortune, and defied the prevaling notion that celebrities and those in positions of influence should be agnostic.Years later Angelina Jolie would work with the UN publicly, because of the groundbreaking work that Diana pioneered. She made the world take notice, and see her as the beacon of light that they needed to push us from the society of the one to the society of the many. Our modern idea that we should be working together for a better world went mainstream because she refused to be a different person just because she married a prince.Some girls spend their whole life imagining what it would be like to marry a prince, but never worry about what it would be like to lose that independence that comes with being a normal, average woman. She faced the challenge head on with some of the most influential decisions in the history of politics and fashion, and that was just and average Tuesday.Articles:* https://www.redcross.org.uk/stories/our-movement/our-history/princess-diana-a-strong-supporter-of-the-british-red-crossShe was Human, and HumaneDiana worked with AIDS patients at a time when the stigma made them socially ostracised, visited landmine victims in Angola, treating them with dignity at a time when they were not given much. She sat on beds with victims, engaged in personal conversations with them, and acted like they were just another person she was visiting.It was a simple but powerful act of kindness, and extended to her auctioning off personal items for charity, working tirelessly for the betterment of others. Probably due to her own personal struggles, which she willingly shared with the world. She was the definition of humble, and a primary force for good in the world.The proof of which is in so many different places, and resonates with people around the world, to this day. The biggest beacon of that same hope is in her legacy as it continues through her children. Catherine O’hara, a similar beacon of light in the world we no longer have, was asked once what she most wanted to be remembered as, of all her roles. She responded, “as my greatest role, as a mother.” Princess Diana was above all things, a mother trying to do the best for her children.A role she did so well, we remember it to this day.We hope you enjoyed learning about Diana, Princess of Wales, her life’s work, and her legacy. To find out more, visit substack for a more complete timeline, and additional resources in the companion article. This has been Oddity of Altruism, I’m your host LorBear, and I hate to be the Bearer of Bad News, so I won’t!Thanks for reading The Bear of Bad News! Subscribe for free to receive new posts and support my work. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit thebearofbadnews.substack.com