As a news junkie, I never like to miss a news broadcast. Politics is my main interest, but news is news and, since I want to be an informed individual, I must keep up to date. So I watch (or read) everything. And as a person with strong opinions, I usually have one on everything. I either like what I learn or I don’t. I either believe what I’ve learned or I don’t. But even someone with strong opinions occasionally hits a snag. That is where I am now. My state of mind is one of confusion.
I never had much interest in the royal family since we don’t have royals in America. The closest we come to royalty is the adoration some people have for the Hollywood crowd and sports heroes. There are royal families in several countries, but only the one in the UK makes headlines here and is a source of fascination for some folks. Despite my lack of interest, I do watch the weddings of the UK royals, but that’s because I enjoy the occasional bit of pomp and circumstance. With the exception of the late Princess Diana, who was always magnificently attired, I paid little attention to any of the royals. The late Queen Elizabeth’s monochromatic way of dressing was always a turn-off for me. A green suit, green hat, green gloves, and green handbag are not inspiring. The same can be said for those items in any color. Fashion was not her strong suit. But it was hard not to be captivated by Diana’s beauty and the gowns she wore.
Kate Middleton always looks good, but she isn’t in the same league as her late mother-in-law. And those outrageous hats, known as fascinators, offer nothing more than a bit of amusement.
Aside from the above-mentioned fashion, there was little that interested me about Buckingham Palace or Balmoral or their inhabitants. Then Prince Harry married Meghan Markle, and everything changed. The couple stuck it out for a while, but eventually they left Great Britain and moved across the pond to this neck of the words. It wasn’t long before the family split apart. Now that they live here, this couple makes it a priority to be in the news on a regular basis. And they do this while professing the need for privacy. They give interviews and never miss an opportunity to complain about what life was like for them back home.
Just recently, Harry wrote a memoir, Spare, that gives new meaning to the words “tell all.” He is either a pretty smart guy or he has a great publicist because, in spite of having left the royal family and having disassociated himself from big brother William and the rest of the clan, he continues to use the moniker “prince.” He gave up on his family but not the use of his title. Chances are that this is because being a prince will help to sell his book. And this is where my personal conundrum rears its ugly head.
I vacillate between believing how awful life was for Harry and his better half when they lived in the UK and disbelieving what they say. The consensus seems to be evenly divided. Half the people here believes Harry’s tale of woe and cheer him on for liberating himself by writing about the horrors of his former life, and the other half thinks he’s either outright lying or grossly exaggerating most of it. Did his family put poor Meghan through a terrible time? Did she really contemplate suicide? We will never really know. In any case, neither of the two looks any the worse for wear.
While none of this is of sincere interest to me, it does frustrate me because I like to have a solid opinion about what is in the news. But the news about the information provided by this couple leaves me without any opinion. Instead, it leaves me with questions. I change my mind every time these two speak. Is Harry a spoiled brat who enjoys tarnishing his family’s reputation? Should he just get a good therapist for himself instead of writing a book? Is Meghan simply doing what she does best—acting? Or do these two have legitimate complaints about the way Meghan was treated and how difficult life was for them?
Because my questions are endless, I have no real opinion. And all this is about two people I don’t even care about. I am aware, and I freely admit, that all of this is unimportant and a colossal waste of my time. Unfortunately, that’s the way it is!
Hannah Berman lives in Woodmere and can be reached at Savtahannah@aol.com or 516-295-4435. Read more of Hannah Berman’s articles on 5TJT.com.
