Two Women Icons Died Yesterday: Annette Funicello and Margaret Thatcher
I started my day yesterday with the news that Margaret Thatcher had died. Yes, she was old. Yes, she was controversial. But yes, she was also a role model for young women all over the world. Margaret Thatcher to me epitomized the American Dream (even though she was British). That dream being that you can make anything at all you want of yourself if you work hard enough and stand by your principals. For those of us who lived through the 1980's she was a seminal figure of that time. For me she was an inspiration showing every day that you can stand up for what you believe, you can articulate what you believe, and you don't need to lose your femininity in doing so. She truly showed how far you can go with determination!
Towards the end of my day yesterday, I picked up a Facebook note from a high school classmate that said Annette Funicello had died. We hear about famous people and celebrities dying all the time... but for the first time in memory, I actually shed a tear over the death of a celebrity because it was like the end of an era for me. Annette Funicello was a seminal figure for us girls who grew up in the 1950's. The first TV show I watched was The Mickey Mouse Club... and Annette was always my absolute favorite Mousketeer, as she was for many young girls of that time. Through The Mickey Mouse Club show, Annette was my daily companion for years after school. Annette often said she wasn't the best singer, she wasn't the best dancer, she wasn't the prettiest... but she struck a cord with so many of us. And I think that cord was that she also showed us we didn't have to be the prettiest, the smartest, the most talented to become what we wanted to be. We just needed to make a commitment to our craft and do it!
Both of these ladies ended their lives with physical infirmities--Annette Funicello suffered bravely with Multiple Sclerosis for over two decades; Margaret Thatcher from a series of strokes and dementia. Yet both never lost their elegance and both demonstrated extraordinaty grace under pressure. They were indeed role models for us right until the end.
In my mind there was a certain symmetry in the fact that both of these ladies who are so different and for whom I had so much respect, died on the same day. My blog is primarily about Charlotte real estate... but today I needed to pay tribute to two women icons who died yesterday--Annette Funicello and Margaret Thatcher. We won't be seeing the likes of them again any time soon.
RIP... Annette I just know you are now dancing in heaven!
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