It's been 20 years since Princess Diana tragically passed away in a car accident [1] in Paris on Aug. 31, 1997, and it seems as though the world will never stop grieving [2] for the princess it lost too soon. One of Diana's closest friends, Elton John, paid tribute to her in an extraspecial way all those years ago when he sang "Candle in the Wind" at her funeral [3].
The singer, who also shared a touching photo of himself and Diana on Thursday [5] in honor of the anniversary, sang the heartbreaking and beautiful song in front of the 2,000 guests at her funeral at Westminster Abbey in London on Sept. 6, 1997. Elton originally wrote the song in 1973 [6] as a tribute to Marilyn Monroe, who had died 11 years earlier, but he changed the lyrics to reflect the life of Princess Diana [7] after her death. He has said over the years that he refuses to perform the song again unless specifically requested by Diana's sons, Prince William and Prince Harry [8].