I guess by now everyone has read some excerpts from Harry’s memoir, SPARE. It’s amazing that it’s a #1 best seller. The British monarchy is an outdated institution. For 1,000 years, it’s been assumed that the oldest son of a dying king was qualified to take over his Dad’s job, and do whatever kings are supposed to do. Which seems like a pretty flimsy premise. Would the oldest son of every cardiologist automatically qualify as a heart surgeon? Does a Kentucky derby winner stud breed a champion with every mare? As far as I can see, the British obsession with the monarchy is much ado about nothing.

MUCH ADO ABOUT NOTHING Harry's memoir reveals the monarchy's many flaws

MUCH ADO ABOUT NOTHING IN UK. Prince Harry’s memoir, SPARE, exposes the frailty of the monarchy.

One episode in the book exemplified the trivial pursuits of the monarchy. Pregnant Princess Kate forgot something and American wife of the Spare jokingly attributed it to baby brain. Kate, being an uptight future queen, did not brush this off or take it in stride. She and the Prince of Wales decided this was a major insult that called for a formal confrontation at their home, after inviting Meghan and Harry for tea. Kate might have vented to her husband , but did they really need to make a mountain out of a molehill ? And when Meghan tried to explain, did William have to stick his finger in her face? Much ado about nothing

The monarchy is probably super touchy because they’re aware that their very livelihood is based on a scientifically invalid premise. They’re scared to death it’s finally going to dawn on the British taxpayers that the whole thing is a hoax. They’re frantically trying to maintain their image, even if it means playing games and planting stories with the British tabloids. It must be nerve wracking to think your very existence depends upon the whims of yellow journalists and muckrakers.

I don’t know what’s going to happen to Harry and Meghan in California. They may run out of steam after awhile, but I hope they achieve some sort of stability for their children. As far as re uniting with Harry’s toxic family-why would they want to?

The holiday season is a time when birth order can be problematic. Especially if you’re like me—the baby of the family. All families have a baby, unless there’s just one child. So there are zillions of us out there. When you’re a baby of the family, it sometimes seems like the older kids receive more thoughtful gifts from Santa. They are more experienced at wheedling their parents into getting them what they desire. There are other downsides to being the baby, but one of the worst is when your siblings have all passed away and you’re the only one left with the baby of the family blues.

BABY OF THE FAMILY BLUES sometimes surface at Christmas — BABY OF THE FAMILY BLUES. The youngest child sometimes feels overshadowed by her older siblings.

I really didn’t appreciate my place in the family when I was growing up. After all, I had two older sisters, which meant most of my clothing was on the third round. (That was in the post depression years, and my father had health problems.) It wasn’t until I was old enough to baby sit that I could pay for my own new clothes. I didn’t hold it against anyone, because I knew money was tight in our family of three girls and a boy—but I didn’t like it much, either.

Later on, I nurtured a few more grudges, like remembering the time I was accidentally left behind after a picnic in the park. They were back in a few minutes, but it felt like everyone sorta forgot about me sometimes.

Another annoying thing was being called by my oldest sister’s first name. And when I moved back to town at the age of 36, I was shocked to find that people were still doing it. It happens to this day, even though my sister is long gone. My identity, so carefully nurtured, once again was swallowed up by my sister, who had lived in the same town her entire life.

After college, I moved away. Took a job in Chicago, later moved to Florida. Then I started missing my older siblings. and cried when their visits came to an end. And when my first marriage went bad, and I had three little children to take care of, they opened their arms to me when I moved back home. That’s when I was glad to be the baby of the family.

I suspect Meghan and Harry have a touch of Baby of the Family Blues. Meghan, especially. Not only was she her mother’s only child , she was the half-sister baby in her father’s first family.

The baby may feel like an outsider, because the older kids seem to get more of their parent’s attention and respect. I can understand why Harry refers to himself as the Spare. I remember exactly how that feels. The baby of the family blues never really go away.