fonte/Harper's Bazaar
"I really miss Diana. I loved her so much,” says Sarah Ferguson, the Duchess of York, about the Princess of Wales. “Diana was one of the quickest wits I knew; nobody made me laugh like her. But because we were like siblings—actually, we were fourth cousins and our mothers, who went to school together, were also best friends—we rowed. And the saddest thing, at the end, we hadn’t spoken for a year, though I never knew the reason, except that once Diana got something in her head....I tried, wrote letters, thinking whatever happened didn’t matter, let’s sort it out. And I knew she’d come back. In fact, the day before she died she rang a friend of mine and said, ‘Where’s that Red? I want to talk to her.’”
But that was not to be—a loss that also affected the duchess’s relationship with Prince William and Prince Harry, with whom she’s had no contact “since Diana and I quit speaking. I’d like to—we had lovely times together—but I don’t want either thinking that I’m trading on my friendship with them, pushing myself on them, though I’ll always stand by the boys 100 percent. They’ve grown up exceptionally well— leaders, role models—but then Charles is a great man and Camilla is fabulous. I’ve known her my entire life because she and my mother [killed in a 1998 car wreck] were always best friends, and she was so nice to me. I love her”—an affection that apparently caused no problems with Diana. “Actually, I didn’t see much of Camilla then,” she says.
You’ve got to hand it to Sarah Ferguson. Despite some spectacularly inappropriate and public mishandlings of her youthful relationships with men, the 47-year-old veteran of palace intrigue has maneuvered some tricky royal waters with remark- ably admirable aplomb.
Take the 1996 divorce deal she struck with her formidable former mother-in-law, Queen Elizabeth, whom “I still see, love, and admire. I didn’t want a divorce but had to because of circumstance,” she says, calling it “the most painful time of my life.” (She and Prince Andrew had legally separated in 1992, triggered by the demands of his naval career—which allowed the couple to see each other a mere 40 days a year for the first five years—as well as rumors of her infidelity.) “I wanted to work; it’s not right for a princess of the royal house to be commercial, so Andrew and I decided to make the divorce official so I could go off and get a job.”
She pauses. “The queen and I always got on well, still do; I uphold everything Her Majesty represents, has given up her life for,” without, she believes, regrets. “It’s her duty. For her country, she’s selfless to the grave.” As for the queen’s mothering skills, she rallies an immediate, ringing defense: “I believe Her Majesty’s done the best job she can. For me, she’s been extraordinary.”
Perhaps it’s because the queen’s former daughter-in-law behaved in kind when it came to the terms of her divorce, opting for “friend- ship, not money. When I met with Her Majesty about it, she asked, ‘What do you require, Sarah?’ and I said, ‘Your friendship,’ which I think amazed her because everyone said I would demand a big settlement. But I wanted to be able to say, ‘Her Majesty is my friend’— not fight her nor have lawyers saying, ‘Look, she is greedy.’ I left my marriage knowing I’d have to work. I have.”
This year marks not only Sarah’s triumphant decade-long run as a spokesperson for Weight Watchers but also the January launch of her own company, Hartmoor, “a global inspirational lifestyle and wellness company” à la Martha Stewart. “I’m the boss,” beams the co-CEO once better known for spending than making money. “Hartmoor is a department store of everything I do: books [she’s written 24, and another in her children’s series Little Red is in the works, and a portion of proceeds will go to her charity Children in Crisis], a Web site,” and products like her Slatkin & Co. candle, available in May, with a percentage of sales going to the Sarah Ferguson Foundation.
Read more: Sarah Ferguson Interview on Divorce - Sarah Ferguson Princess Diana Interview - Harper's BAZAAR
Nenhum comentário:
Postar um comentário