WE live in the smartphone age dominated by technology.
Nearly everything in our lives can be ordered instantly online.
That is one of the reasons why the scenes from the Lying-in-State of the Queen inside Westminster Hall have been so astonishingly moving.
It is impossible to think of another event of such importance where the ban on mobile phones would be so exquisitely observed.
It has been said many times in recent days that Queen Elizabeth was of a different age to the world we now inhabit.
Never has this been displayed more eloquently than in the scenes from Parliament.
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By the time the doors shut tomorrow morning, hundreds of thousands of people will have said their own touching farewell to the monarch.
Many of those privileged to have paid their respects will have waited more than 24 hours to do so.
With one, mercifully brief, exception, the crowds have been a true reflection of the woman they have come in such incredible numbers to cherish: quiet and dignified but with a steely determination to do what was fitting.
There were no overt displays of emotion.
This was a world away from the shrill hysteria of the social media age.
Public pomp met private reflection in a prevailing calmness.
Those who entered the historical magnificence of Westminster Hall went because they felt it was the right thing to do. No one overstayed their welcome.
For those who braved aching limbs and the rigours of the British autumn to see their Queen — it was truly worth the wait.
We will always be in debt to our Queen.
This was our chance to pay her back.
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She was always there for us.
And, at the last, we can be proud that we were there for her too.
