One aspect of President Reagan's burial service in Simi Valley was the sense of closure to a history of family tensions. During the Reagan administration, Patti Davis (she didn't want to use his name, but her mother's)was rebellious, posing for Playboy, writing tell-all books, sensational novels, and living with LA rockers, etc. Closer to Jane Fonda, in some ways, than her father.
At yesterday's events, she appeared as an ideal daughter, devoted, genuinely loving to her mother, and close to her brother. Patti's eulogy was warm and loving, showing a sense of understanding for her father. The parable of the goldfishes, as it were, contrasted her youthful impatience with her father's more mature understanding of life. By telling that story, at her own expense, Patti was making a gesture of reconciliation between generations.
So, when Patti and Ron came to Nancy's side when she broke down at the casket, not wanting to let go, it was an illustration of love, caring and tenderness, that they would look after Nancy as their father had done.
In a sense, that moment provided a symbol of closure for the "Generation Gap" of the 1960s, which affected many American families, including the Reagans.
