Why Do We Care About Harry And Meghan So Much?

Can we just let Harry and Meghan, the Duke and Duchess of Sussex, move on with their lives?

Don't get me wrong. I'm not so cold and unfeeling of a person not to understand the draw that these two have. There's something magical about kings, queens and princesses marrying their prince.

I also remember when Princess Diana - which is how she was known in 1981 - got married to Prince Charles with that ridiculously long train trailing behind her. I was eight. I remember when William, and then Harry, was born, and how crazy the world seemed back then. Hey! It's the heir and a spare! Let's put a few million cameras on them and watch their every breath as they grow up.

Even though I was pretty much too young to truly understand the scrutiny the royal family was under when I was a kid, it always seemed to me that it was ridiculous that a mom and her two kids commanded so much attention in the press. Back then, as now, I couldn't see the continued interest in the royal family.

I understand that in Britain, if not the United Kingdom as a whole, I might have a different take on the situation, but I'm not British. I'm Canadian, and it's been a very long time since Canada was part of the British Empire and seen as one of the colonies.

The scrutiny on the royal family seems to have reached a fever pitch now that Meghan Markle joined the family. To be sure, she's probably one of the more contentious figures - at least, on the surface - that has ever joined the royal family. Yes, she's biracial. Yes, she's divorced. To an extent, it's got to be jarring, to put it politely, for some fans of the royal family - if not for some royal family members themselves - that someone with such a colorful background and ancestry has gone and married one of the world's most beloved princes.

That is perhaps part of the problem. Affection for Diana's youngest son has always been high, and it's undoubtable that Harry could have fallen for and married a paragon of virtue and there would still be those who would find something to dislike about the person. Harry even reportedly cautioned Meghan about the problems with being a part of the royal family, probably before they even got married, because he knows, better than most, about the intense scrutiny he faced and continues to face.

No one could possibly forget his and William's faces as they made that somber march to the cathedral to attend their mother's funeral. No one could possibly forget the pain that seemed to be a part of every step they took, and when the world learned that the card labelled "Mummy" on the casket contained a note from Harry, our hearts warmed even more towards the ginger haired prince in particular.

Now, he's a grown man who has fought with the army in Afghanistan and gone on to conduct himself admirably. His mother would unquestionably be proud of Harry, and now, he's gone and made the unbelievable choice to step back as a senior member of the royal family in the best interests not of the royal family as a whole, but his own young family.

Why does the public care so much at this point? We all know the insane scrutiny he faced growing up. No parent in their right mind would want that for their partner and children, if they had a choice.

It makes sense that Harry would decide to step back. He's always wanted to try and be his own man, but the royal family has constrained him in many ways. Decorum and protocol will always win out and now, Harry can make his own choices rather than having to think about royal protocol. It would be far different if he was second or third in line to the throne, but he's not. He's sixth. That, in and of itself, should give Harry a lot of breathing room, as he would be free of the pressures that undoubtedly face his older brother.

We need to give Harry and Meghan the space they need to just be parents and contributing members to society. Sure, they will always have more privilege than most, but now, they can take some time and explore who it is they're supposed to be outside the confines of the royal family.