The Story of one Woman’s journey from Chicago’s South Side to the White House
The date: April 1, 2009.
The location: London.
The precise location: Buckingham Palace.
For Michelle and Barack Obama, it's a big day.
Back in January, Barack was inaugurated as president of the United States.
Now, he and Michelle are attending the reception of the G20 summit – and they're regarded as newcomers on the world stage.
Here's Michelle, who grew up on Chicago's South Side, rubbing shoulders and eating canapés with Angela Merkel and Nicolas Sarkozy.
It's exciting – but she's not quite sure how to behave amid the strange newness of the old world.
Near the end of the party, the Queen of England appears suddenly on Michelle's right.
Both have spent the evening engaged in small talk, adhering to strict formal protocol.
So the mood seems to lighten when the Queen looks at Michelle's pumps and says, “Well, those shoes are rather unpleasant, are they not?” They both admit that their feet hurt – and have a good laugh together.
At this moment, following a natural impulse, Michelle lays her hand on the Queen's back, as she'd do with any other person she'd just formed a human connection with.
What she didn't know at the time was that she'd breached the protocol – massively. The yellow press acted as if she'd committed a heinous crime, or at least a monstrous faux pas.
How dare she touch her Royalty! But rather than hiding her face in shame, Michelle stood by the gesture.
It may not have been the correct thing to do. But it was the human thing to do.
And what's more, the Queen had returned the gesture, placing her hand, in its white glove, on Michelle's back.
This little scene reveals a lot about the warm character of Michelle Obama:
She's a strong yet affectionate woman, who wants to do everything the right way and still seeks to find common ground.
And yes, she's also controversial.
The Story of one Woman’s journey from Chicago’s South Side to the White House
The date: April 1, 2009.
The location: London.
The precise location: Buckingham Palace.
For Michelle and Barack Obama, it's a big day.
Back in January, Barack was inaugurated as president of the United States.
https://media.giphy.com/media/eSFhEzINzutNe/giphy.gif
Now, he and Michelle are attending the reception of the G20 summit – and they're regarded as newcomers on the world stage.
Here's Michelle, who grew up on Chicago's South Side, rubbing shoulders and eating canapés with Angela Merkel and Nicolas Sarkozy.
It's exciting – but she's not quite sure how to behave amid the strange newness of the old world.
Near the end of the party, the Queen of England appears suddenly on Michelle's right.
Both have spent the evening engaged in small talk, adhering to strict formal protocol.
So the mood seems to lighten when the Queen looks at Michelle's pumps and says, “Well, those shoes are rather unpleasant, are they not?” They both admit that their feet hurt – and have a good laugh together.
At this moment, following a natural impulse, Michelle lays her hand on the Queen's back, as she'd do with any other person she'd just formed a human connection with.
What she didn't know at the time was that she'd breached the protocol – massively. The yellow press acted as if she'd committed a heinous crime, or at least a monstrous faux pas.
How dare she touch her Royalty! But rather than hiding her face in shame, Michelle stood by the gesture.
It may not have been the correct thing to do. But it was the human thing to do.
And what's more, the Queen had returned the gesture, placing her hand, in its white glove, on Michelle's back.
This little scene reveals a lot about the warm character of Michelle Obama:
She's a strong yet affectionate woman, who wants to do everything the right way and still seeks to find common ground.
And yes, she's also controversial.
#TheStoryofoneWomans