Gretchen .. I was struck by that little escort done by GW at the funeral .. and how they squeezed hands while gazing at each other. I kept wondering if it had been planned the previous evening when the President when to visit with Nancy. I believe it was the outward appearance of a spiritual event .. the passing of the mantle of Reagan to GW. What say you ..??
To me, it almost seemed like an afterthought, that the Major General handed off the escort duty to the President, because it was in such slow motion and carried out with some seeming uncertainty, but I'm sure it was planned. W was the only one from whom Nancy seemed to draw strength and find a way back to a place where she could exit her numbness for a few seconds. I felt she was showing a tremendous amount of approbation to W during those few moments when he escorted her, and during the eulogy.
I thought the escort by Pres. Bush of Nancy was very touching, too. I didn't think of it as "passing the mantle" but it did make that statement.