Admittedly, it's Full of Nonsense, Over-the-Top Hospitality and Self-Help Jargon. Yet I Truly Love Meghan's Holiday Special.
No matter the season, it's perpetually hunting season for commentary on the Duchess of Sussex's televisual offering, With Love, Meghan. Critics, expert and amateur alike, have rarely been so united as when enthusiastically shredding the lifestyle show's initial installments to pieces. The common opinion was that a bigger monarchy-related faux pas had seldom occurred than the much-discussed pretzel re-packaging incident.
Presently, in the spirit of a holiday maverick, she is back for another round with a "Festive Special" (aka a Christmas special). However on this occasion, the dynamic has changed. The familiar ingredients we've come to expect – meaningless jargon salads, intense hospitality – are still present, but set of a Christmas special, suddenly it all makes sense. The puzzle has come into place; it's a ideal seasonal storm.
Now, Meghan has become the quirky relative at Christmas celebrations everywhere – providing unsolicited, unnecessary advice, and supplying the odd random outburst. ("I love spinach!" … "A tradition has to have a beginning." … "A tree is part of my memory and love of the holiday season.") She's quite a personality, but her company is customary and oddly reassuring. And she looks pleased; she's inflicting a bit of damage.
She knows her all subtle gestures, word and gaze will be dissected and judged, but manages to seem relaxed and too blessed to be stressed.
Maybe this is the initial instance in history where that old chestnut – "Don't listen, it's pure jealousy" – could actually be true. The reason is, let's face it, everything in Meghan's Holiday Celebration honestly feels charming. Granted, it's all painfully excessive, nonsense and extravagant – but doesn't that represent precisely what Christmas is for? And the talk she's talking might be ridiculous, but the example she sets seems authentically impeccably styled.
Anything she sets her mind to, she executes with style. Her recipes looks scrumptious, the festive decoration she creates is breathtaking, her presents are almost too pretty to tear into. Nothing is ordinary or visually unappealing – even the way she ties her apron is stylish and elegant. She doesn't toss a meal in the microwave, it "has a moment", and she creases wrapping paper like an paper-folding expert. She also seems to be thoroughly enjoying herself from start to finish. How could any cynical observer not be won over, overcome by holiday spirit and left with a powerful yearning for personalized Christmas crackers or a crudites platter where greens is arranged in the shape of a festive circle?
Meghan had a career in acting for a living, obviously, but despite that, after the degree of examination she has weathered from the moment she met Prince Harry, the love child of acting royalty would struggle to act this naturally. Her unwillingness to modify or even tone down her persona, regardless of it being so constantly, widely parodied, is oddly heartening. In our uncertain world, here is something we can rely on: Meghan will be like this, whatever happens. We will forever know our position with her.
If you're remaining skeptical of her message, a reminder that will certainly come as a relief: you don't have to. There isn't the draft anymore, and should it be reinstated, it would be improbable to include watching With Love, Meghan: Holiday Celebration. If, however, you decide to tune in and are overcome with jealousy about her picture-perfect Christmas, all is not lost either. Be you a duchess or a data administrator, no kid truly appreciates the dedication and labor their mother puts in in the holiday season. So you can find comfort by imagining the young royals' faces when they open a handwritten message that says, 'I love you because you are brave,' from a homemade Advent calendar, in place of a chocolate.
