In January 2016, months before she met the love of her life, Meghan Markle made a promise to herself: she wasn't going to make a typical list of New Year's resolutions that she likely wouldn't follow through. Instead, she made a different vow.
The Duchess of Sussex admitted in her now-defunct lifestyle blog, The Tig, at the time that she had a hard time completing her goals — such as finding time to workout or learning a new language.
“Run a marathon. Stop biting my nails. Stop swearing. Re-learn French. These make my New Year’s resolution list nearly (AKA actually every) single year,” the former "Suits" star wrote years earlier, according to People.
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Markle acknowledged she never made time for any of these things.
"The marathon hasn’t happened. The swearing comes in lulls triggered by being overworked or feeling mighty cheeky after a couple drinks. Then there’s the French — a language I studied through high school and then lost as I immersed myself in speaking Spanish with the Argentinians during my stint in Buenos Aires," she wrote, in part. “And when it comes to the biting of the nails – well, it still happens with a turbulent flight or a stressful day. It’s unladylike. But then again, so is the swearing. Dammit."
That's why — in 2016 — Markle pledged to scrap her routine list of resolutions.
“My New Year’s resolution is to leave room for magic. To make my plans, and be okay if they sometimes break."
“This year, I resolve not to have a resolution ... The only thing I aim to do is to approach life playfully. To laugh and enjoy, to keep my standards high but my level of self-acceptance higher,” Markle wrote in her blog, People reports. “My New Year’s resolution is to leave room for magic. To make my plans, and be okay if they sometimes break. To set my goals, but to be open to change."
Roughly six months later, Markle met Prince Harry through mutual friends.
Harry recalled meeting his stunning future bride in July 2016.
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"I was beautifully surprised when I walked into that room and saw her," Harry previously revealed during an interview with the BBC. "I was like, 'I'm really going to have to up my game here.’”
"The fact that I fell in love with Meghan so incredibly quickly was confirmation to me that all the stars were aligned," Harry added. "This beautiful woman just tripped and fell into my life, I fell into her life. I know that she will be unbelievably good at the job part of it as well."
Weeks later, Harry convinced Markle to take a camping trip with him to Botswana — an ideal setting to get to know each other better.
In November 2017, Kensington Palace announced the pair's engagement and they were married in May 2018. The happy couple is expecting their first child in the spring.
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