Today is the birthday of Emperor Haile Selassie.
Through a combination of circumstances, I was chosen to give flower to Emperor Haile Selassie as a young girl.
The photographs are from my post Flowers for the Emperor, where I posted them in my Camera Lucida blog, along with my comments:
I was chosen to present flowers to Emperor Haile Selassie. The dress and cape were especially made for the occasion. I wasn't really instructed on what to do, how to do it, and what to do after I gave the flowers. But, I do remember following closely behind. I was rewarded with a call from the Emperor to join him at the end of the tour. He took my hand, my wrist as I remember and as the photo shows, and led me toward the exit, asking me my name, and questions about my school. I was not shy at all, and talked, like little girls do, to this nice old man, with the pleasant smile who didn't seem at all like the imposing figure that everyone seemed to fear.
Later on, people were gently admonishing me for looking straight in his eyes when giving the flowers. But look at how seriously he took my small task of giving him the flowers. And he must have found me just a little amusing, with his interested and gentle smile as he took my hand.