What can we learn from the life of Princess Diana?

I think there are many life lessons to take from Diana's life as I will demonstrate in this short blog post. Princess Diana may not have been a traditional blue blood, however she certainly shook up the royalty in the United Kingdom in an unprecedented way. There are some who will have negative viewpoints about her, but mine is all positive as I demonstrate we can all learn from her short-lived 36 years.

Love is simply the best

We cannot dispute that this princess had a huge heart, not only displayed in her love for Prince Charles at the outset, but her children and the many charities, causes and people that she came into contact with. She had no issue with hugging the sick and frail. Equally, she would often choose to visit the homeless off camera, showing that she truly cared and it was not a publicity stunt.

She protected her children, even though she was a young mother. It was clear that she was always trying to limit the media coverage of them. It was beautiful to she her natural interaction of them, on the opportunities we were afforded as they were growing.

I do not think anyone cannot dispute that Princess Diana loved wholeheartedly, often to her detriment but it was a natural and innocent love. Many people are afraid to show love, they somehow equate it with weakness, when it fact it is a strength to be able to love without need for boast or reward.

Judge a person by their core

Maybe this may seem obvious, but in the 21st Century, the media influences us to judge by labels, headlines and all sorts of criteria.

Labels are attached to individuals supposedly to classify, but more often than not this alienates sections of our society. Minorities are undoubtedly identified and amplified as being different. Indeed, we are all different, so we should be wary of highlighting those characteristics. We are seeing a time when these labels are costing lives, so it is important to carefully consider the diagnosis of being 'different', especially as to the resultant effect on our society.

Princess Diana just by being herself, demonstrated her core. She was not perfect, but no human being is. I believe that many people identify with her as they can see snippets of themselves within her personality. Maybe this was not intentional, but this was a powerful way to endear a nation.

Fragility is a strength

Nothing is as endearing as a fragile flower, which blooms and shows us its beauty, and then wilts. The flower shows us that it is powerful in displaying this fragility, because we would do anything to acquire that beautiful thing, to be in its presence, to care for that precious flower and ultimately it reflects all life.

I suggest that showing your real character is a strength, displaying your human weaknesses is the most natural thing in the world. It is unnatural as a human being to be guarded about emotions and cold on the exterior. Princess Diana was certainly transparent about her feelings, and the world watched as she was hurting. We saw the strain as she lost weight, which is a normal reaction to experiencing stress and turmoil.

Celebrity has a great price tag

Social media affords us the opportunity for publication to the world, however it has it's downside. There is not always a positive gain to the access of multiple people. It may mean that people equally feel that they have a right to the reverse access.

Princess Diana clearly went through many stages with her interaction with the media. However it was clear this was a constant challenge for her, especially in terms of having that privacy for which she craved.

Money will never make you an icon

We live in an age of reality television, but those seeking this quick fame of this new cyclical 'fad' are not iconic personalities which we truly respect and love. Television is a currently full of programmes with people seeking to boost their popularity by showing us how they live, what they do in private, their relationships and so on. Maybe as humanity is travelling through an age of removal of social barriers, this may seem fascinating, but ultimately the love affair will be over. These stars will fall out of grace and people will return to their normality.

True popularity is borne out of empathy and not money, media or anything else. Diana became popular very quickly as she was natural. The public identified with her as she grew up in the world of royalty, showing us her raw emotion and frustrations. Another current iconic figure demonstrating this is Narenda Modi, who is extremely popular in India, despite humble beginnings as the son of a tea seller.

Family is everything

Life centred around family is healthy and balanced. Ultimately, success is not a matter of wealth or assets as they amount to nothing at the end of the day. However, if you have a happy family life, then you will not crave all the wealth on this planet. Money is merely a facilitator in life, giving us access to things, using a common currency exchange. However, it will never bring the happiness that many of us crave, and in some ways it creates an artificial lifestyle, where we do not appreciate the bare necessities that we really need.

Whether you agree or disagree with these suggestions, you will probably be pausing for thought as there are definitely some considerations for us all.

One of my early oil paintings was the 'Fairytale Princess', which I think you will recognise as a portrait inspired by the beautiful Princess Diana, showing some of her characteristics in the composition of this painting. My art paintings are always borne out of empathy, as I try to include a hidden meaning to my artwork, so please feel free to view my inspirational artwork and poetry on the new website.