WhenMeghan Marklereturned to Canada alone earlier this month asPrince Harryremained in the U.K. tofinalize the details of their exit from royal life, she didn’t come back to an empty house.
“Meghan had friends and her mom around while Harry remained in England,” a source tells PEOPLE.
Meghan’s mother,Doria Ragland, has been spending time with her daughter, son-in-law and grandsonArchiewhile the young family stays on Vancouver Island.
“She definitely gets a lot of her strength from her mother,” says a friend.
Ragland, a social worker and yoga instructor who lives in Los Angeles, also spent the holidays with Meghan and Harry in the weeks leading up to the couple’s announcement that they are stepping down as senior royals. And she’s been an important source of support ever since.
The first-time grandmother “says Meghan is strong and will always be okay,” a source who occasionally crosses paths with Ragland previously told PEOPLE.
Doria Ragland and Meghan Markle.Splash
The characteristics that inspire Meghan’s steady confidence were plain to see for those who met Ragland at the royal wedding in May 2018.
“She has a softness, but I detected a steely core to her,” a royal family friend said of Ragland.
“She and Meghan are so close,” the friend said. “Harry really gets on well with her too. Any new mom wants her own mom around at this time, so it’s great.”
Richard Heathcote/Getty
In a sweet 2014 Mother’s Day post on Meghan’s former lifestyle blogThe Tig, she praised thanked her mom for serving as a role model.
“She was keeping me safe. She was teaching me to take care of my body. She was introducing me to history, and fostering a love of being outdoors. She was planting the seed for me to become a foodie. She was showing me how to be a daughter, not just in that moment, but for when I became that grown woman. For right now. And thirty years from now. She was loving me. So tightly,” Meghan wrote.
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Meghan and Harry’s desire to have a normal family life played a huge role in their decision to step down as senior royals. When Archie was born, the couple’s focus shifted even more to “doing what’s right for their family,” another friend previously told PEOPLE.
source: people.com
