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He was not consumed by himself. He didn't need to be president to be a complete person. The only thing he really needed was to be with his wife.

I thought Danforth was terrible. Dull, plodding, and superficial. And the above line unwittingly condemned Ronald Reagan as a lousy father. What the hell kind of compliment is it to say of a father of four, that he only really needed to be with his wife? I love my wife, but for me, the sun rises and sets on my son. I could see someone loving his wife and child equally (in theory, anyway), but to say that a father only needed his wife, is to diminish the man.

I thought that Mrs. Thatcher, in spite of her infirmities, was the most eloquent speaker, in her taped talk. Pres. Bush the Younger had some good lines, but his diction was hampered by his almost ubiquitous discomfort at public speaking. And Brian Mulroney was good -- the man has a very pleasant voice. But for me, by far the most moving speaker was Pres. Bush the Elder. The words weren't such that they would have jumped off the written page, if you hadn't seeen him deliver them, choking on tears. I also admired the fact that Pres. Bush (I) was the only person I heard all week, who mentioned the late Maureen Reagan. She was such a devoted daughter (unlike Patti Davis), and died so prematurely, that it was unforgivable for so many talking heads to act as if she had never lived.

I understand and agree with the reference he made about President Reagan needing only his wife. That doesn't diminish the love a parent has for their children,but a loving spouse "completes" a person in a special way that no other relationship can. Children grow up,marry,have spouses and families of their own. You grow old with your husband or wife,you share a life with them until death do you part.You love your children,but it's not them that you lean on when you need support(who would put that on their children anyway?),you turn to your spouse. That seems perfectly natural to me.
I also think that grown children who can't understand this perfectly natural special relationship have some insecurity issues.

Rev. Danforth seemed to break down at the casket in California after the service (at least I thought it was Danforth, the feed I saw showed a sort of weird angle). I thoroughly enjoyed his words and presence during the day.

Actually I heard Maureen mentioned several times by the press. Especially since her husband was traveling with the family, I heard several commentators make reference to to him and to her death.

My favorite part was this:

...the Reagan message. It rang of optimism, and we longed to hear it...It was a vision with policy implications. America could not hide its light under a bushel. It could not turn in on itself and hunker down. Isolationism was not an option; neither was protectionism. We must champion freedom everywhere. We must be the beacon for the world. What Ronald Reagan asked of America, he gave of himself...If ever we have known a child of light, it was Ronald Reagan. He was aglow with it. He had no dark side, no scary, hidden agenda. What you saw, was what you got.

I saw this as a counter to all of those who think that conservatives all have "scary hidden agendas" that they must lie to cover up. They said it about Reagan and they have been forced to eat their words. They scream it daily about Bush and ...