Cinderella Wallis?

When I was about five years old the Duke and Duchess of Windsor were on the television and my mother said, "He loves her so much he gave up his throne to marry her. He was once a King." I've been fascinated by this story ever since. It has been almost 64 years since Edward VIII abdicated to marry, in his own words, "the woman I love" . Countless volumes have been written about their affair, which to all outside appearances and many inside reports survived until the Duke's death in 1972. Some say beyond, as the Duchess who was once considered the life of many parties and a renowned hostess became a recluse upon the death of her beloved David.

Some say they were born too soon. That today's world would respect a King who married a divorced woman. I'm not so sure I agree. Though divorce is far more prevalent today, it still carries a stigma. For example, in November of 1995 a million Irish went to the polls to cast theirs votes lifting a ban on divorce introduced to their constitution in 1937 - the year the former Edward VIII married Wallis. The vote? 50.28% for lifting the ban and 49.72% against . A very lean margin indeed.

Granted, once divorce legislation is passed, people seem to take full advantage of it. For example, "since the introduction of "no-fault" divorce in Canada 30 years ago, the rate of marital break-up has soared 600%" . A 1989 statistic I came across for the USA stated, "65% of new marriages fail". So why is it that in 1980 United States Senator Edward Kennedy stood with his wife, Joan, before the nation as he declared his desire to run for President on the Democratic ticket only to announce shortly after conceding to Jimmy Carter that the couple did intend to divorce? It is because the stakes were too high that American's wouldn't elect a divorced President.

In our present day we see issues that would seem to predicate a divorce with current U.S. President and First Lady. We, the world, sit and watch wondering what will happen. Much does, but not divorce. Politicians are still afraid of the ramifications of divorce with their constituents. When it was, "announced from Buckingham Palace that, with regret, the Prince and Princess of Wales have decided to separate" . We were all waiting for Charles to give up Camilla and make a go of it with Diana. We all wanted the story to have a happy ending. We preferred the smiling unity of the Wales to being privy to the awful truth.

Taking all this into consideration, one can hardly believe that Wallis would have been welcomed into the "firm" with open arms even in this early part of the 21st century. We would have wanted the handsome, debonair Prince of Wales to marry a beautiful virgin who would give him children that we could all fawn over - just like Charles and Diana. We would believe that a man like that could have any woman in the world and that he could find a pristine example of womanhood to marry for all our sakes. But, I think we forget the true story of Cinderella. Remember Cinderella was an aristocratic woman who was raised in poverty - just like Wallis. She longed to dance with the handsome prince - just like Wallis. She wore a borrowed dress to the Palace ball - just like Wallis. Cinderella's style and charm captivated those who met her - just like Wallis. When the handsome prince danced with Cinderella he no longer had eyes for any other woman in the kingdom - just like the Prince of Wales and Wallis. Theirs is truly one of the great love stories of all time - just like Cinderella.

With my thanks to those of you kind enough to write about last week's column and share your thoughts on Diana and other favorite members of the Windsor Dynasty. One writer was sharp enough to note that Mother Teresa died within days of Diana and asked if I were sure she sent her condolences. In the USA Today dated 3 September 1997 there was an article submitted by the Associated Press. "People around the world mourn Princess" from which I quote: "In Calcutta, Mother Teresa honored Diana's commitment to those less fortunate than herself, "She was very concerned for the poor. She was very anxious to do something for them. That is why she was close to me."" I am happy to answer any questions - especially a good one like this that really had me second-guessing myself. Thanks again.

Next weeks column will be regarding Prince Harry who will be Sweet Sixteen on September 15, 2000. All the best,