Leaving the royal family was never going to be easy, but Prince Harry and Meghan Markle have done their part to communicate their reasons for doing so. The pair have also worked step-in-step with the Queen, Prince Charles, and Prince William to find a solution that everyone can be happy with.
At least one part of the family is behaving themselves.
Meghan Markle has returned to work, as she surprised the staff at the Downtown Eastside Women's Centre in Vancouver, Canada, with a visit recently. The staff had no idea she was coming and were beside themselves with kind words.
"She was just casual and lovely. She just wants to get to know the community," said Kate Gibson, the center's director. "We know she's going to come to Canada and I think possibly the West Coast. I think that she just doesn't want to be sort of a stranger in the midst. She just wants to get to know people."
Reports of Meghan's visit came out at the same time that other reports of a far less joyful nature were released. It turns out that Meghan Markle's father, Thomas, can't see to keep his name out of the papers these days … and that he is planning to offer evidence against his daughter in court soon.
This particular case is about a letter that Meghan sent Harry (and that tabloids subsequently published). Thomas has released previously unseen text messages that he allegedly received from Harry and Meghan prior to their wedding.
In the court documents, Thomas alleges that after he told Meghan and Harry he could not attend their wedding due to health complications stemming from a heart attack, Harry reached out via text message. Thomas claims the text message "admonished" him for not attending the wedding anyway.
Thomas claims that he replied via text. "I've done nothing to hurt you Meghan or anyone else … I'm sorry my heart attack is … any inconvenience for you."
It is not yet clear what impact, if any, the text messages will have on the case as it moves forward through the British court system.
Meanwhile, it can be assumed that Meghan and Harry will carry on with life as usual. While Archie was not with his mom, Meghan appeared quite happy while on her surprise visit. While it's not clear if Meghan is planning on a long-term relationship with the center or not, this is hardly the first time she has demonstrated a commitment to women and the organizations that serve them.
Last year, Meghan served as a guest editor for British Vogue. In the edition, she made a point of focusing on women's accomplishments for themselves and for one another. She also tackled political movements around the world, much to the chagrin of many.
In 2018, Meghan visited the Hubb Community Kitchen. As Harry and Meghan shared on Instagram, "Today, the women at the Hubb Community Kitchen continue to have a positive impact in their community, across the UK, and around the world. Whether it’s providing a safe space for women and children to come for a hot meal, supporting local schools, serving free lunches to senior citizens, partnering with the Red Cross to provide lunches for refugees, or feeding the homeless – the Hubb helps and heals through their support and sustenance."
She also recently visited the Luminary Bakery in London. The organization has a "remarkable business model that opens its arms to women from vulnerable circumstances (be it abuse, poverty, trafficking, marginalisation) and equips them with the job skills and confidence to succeed."
Meghan also sat down with Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau to discuss gender equality at the One Young World Summit in October 2019. Her agenda also included holding "a round table discussion with several of the OYW young leaders to address the issue of gender equity worldwide, and how we can all play our part to reach equality for all."
Meghan used the visit she and Harry paid to South Africa to reflect on her childhood thoughts about being a girl and woman. "I remember being a young girl watching TV and seeing what was happening in the world, and frankly, often feeling despair. When you constantly see and hear negativity, it can be overwhelming; you can feel powerless, and lost, you can feel different, confused, or like you just don’t belong.
"And I’m sure there is a young girl or boy watching this and thinking the exact same thing."
On the same trip, Meghan paid a visit to ActionAid in Johannesburg. "The Duchess wanted to use her time here to help her better understand the issue of gender-based violence, and learn more about what was being done to tackle this crisis."
In short, whatever her role in the royal family ends up looking like, it's safe to assume Meghan Markle will continue to tackle the issues that matter most to her. Of course, she'll also have to do so while constantly under the scrutiny of the media and the world, but at this point it's clearly not anything she can't handle.
