‘The hardest part of Covid-19 was being separated from those we love’: Kate Middleton gives poignant speech about rediscovering the ‘importance of family and friends’ as she joins William at a Nassau primary school
- The Duchess of Cambridge, 40, gave a poignant speech at school in Bahamas
- Kate Middleton is currently on a royal tour of the Caribbean with Prince William
- Royal said hardest part of pandemic was ‘being separated’ from those ‘we love’
- Added: ‘We had the chance to rediscover just how important our families are’
The Duchess of Cambridge gave a poignant speech today about the difficulties of being separated from loved-ones during the Covid-19 pandemic during a visit to a school in the Bahamas.
Kate Middleton, 40, joined Prince William at the Sybil Strachan Primary School in Nassau this morning where they dropped in on a class to meet pupils and staff, and joined the morning assembly.
The mother-of-three, who was wearing a £350 pastel green dress by Self Portrait and jewellery by Bahamian designer by Nadia Irena, gave a short speech to students at the school, as she spoke of their experiences during the Covid-19 pandemic.
In a moving speech, the Duchess said: ‘One of the hardest things that we have all found about the pandemic is being separated from the people we love.
The Duchess of Cambridge, 40, gave a poignant speech today about the difficulties of being separated from loved-ones during the Covid-19 pandemic during a visit to a school in the Bahamas
In a moving speech, the Duchess said she had ‘had the chance to rediscover how important family is’ during the pandemic
‘But we have also had the chance to rediscover how important our families are, and just how important our friends are too.’
Elsewhere in the speech, the Duchess spoke of her three children, Prince George, eight, Princess Charlotte,six, and Prince Louis, three.
She said: ‘Our three children, George, Charlotte and Louis, all love being by the sea, so I hope they will be able to experience your clear waters and beautiful beaches before too long.’
She added: ‘I always think it is the simple things in life that bring us the most joy: Playing together, chatting to your friends at school, eating meals together, and listening to each other’s stories.
The Duchess spoke of her three children, Prince George, eight, Princess Charlotte,six, and Prince Louis, three, and said how much they ‘love the sea’
‘These are the things that bring us together and give meaning to our lives.’
Meanwhile she went on to reference a proverb from the country, saying: ‘When the moon is not full, the stars shine more brightly.’
Kate, who spent much of the Covid-19 pandemic at her Norfolk home of Anmer Hall, is known to be close to both her younger siblings, Pippa and James, as well as her parents, Carole and Mike.
Earlier in the day, Kate joked about ‘bringing England’s rain with us’ as she and Prince William stepped out amid torrential downpours.
Elsewhere in the speech, Kate went on to reference a proverb from the country, saying ‘when the moon is not full the stars shine more brightly’
The mother-of-three gave a short speech to students at the school, as she spoke of their experiences during the Covid-19 pandemic
The mother-of-three was wearing a £350 pastel green dress by Self Portrait and jewellery by Bahamian designer by Nadia Irena
As the Duchess walked under an umbrella in the rain, she said: ‘Oh my gosh. The weather, sorry, we’ve brought England’s rain with us.’
And William also quipped: ‘We’ve brought the weather, haven’t we?’ In fact, the UK is enjoying unseasonably warm weather today as temperatures reached 19C (66F) and people flocked to beaches across southern England.
Today’s assembly saw children from schools across the Bahamian islands dial in to meet the couple. Schools in the Bahamas were closed for nearly two years from March 2020 until January this year because of the pandemic.
Later during their first full day in the Bahamas, William and Kate will take to the waters off the islands to join a regatta in honour of the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee and are expected to race against each other.
The couple joined the school’s morning assembly which saw children from schools across the Bahamian islands dial in to meet the Duke and Duchess
The Cambridges will also spend time with key workers and frontline staff in an informal gathering in the Garden of Remembrance, also in the capital, to hear about their experiences of the pandemic.
In the evening they will attend a dinner hosted by the Governor General Sir Cornelius Smith featuring community leaders and local heroes and the duke will give a speech.
They are currently on an eight-day tour of the Caribbean which began on Saturday and has already taken them to Belize and Jamaica. The tour will finish tomorrow.
In full: Kate Middleton’s moving speech to children in the Bahamas
Thank you so much and good morning everybody. I hope you didn’t get too wet coming here and apologies for bringing the British weather with us.
I wanted to address the children here in The Bahamas. Whether you are here in the school today with William and me or joining virtually from across The Bahamas, thank you so much for such a warm welcome!
We are so thrilled to be here in The Bahamas, a country that made us feel so at home as soon as we set foot on its soil.
If you are a child growing up in this country today it feels to me like you are very blessed indeed.
The spectacular natural environment of The Bahamas is just one of those blessings – I only wish we were able to visit all of your 700 islands during our stay!
Our three children, George, Charlotte and Louis, all love being by the sea, so I hope they will be able to experience your clear waters and beautiful beaches before too long.
However, as much as you have these natural wonders to enjoy, I know that the last few years have not been easy for many of you.
The pandemic has taken you away from your classrooms and your friends, and learning from home I’m sure has been very difficult.
That is why it is so wonderful that after almost two years being away from each other, you have recently returned to school and been reunited with your teachers and friends again.
I can certainly feel the excitement and energy here today in this room. One of the hardest things that we have all found about the pandemic was being separated from the people we love.
But we have also had the chance to rediscover just how important our families are, and just how important our friends are too.
I always think it is the simple things in life that bring us the most joy: Playing together, chatting to your friends at school, eating meals together, and listening to each other’s stories.
These are the things that bring us together and give meaning to our lives. The connections, the relationships and the friendships that you make during school are so special.
So please look after them, cherish them and take time for them. And remember to be kind and understanding and loving to yourself and others.
Today I also wanted to say a huge thank you to your parents, guardians and teachers.
They, I am sure, have found the pandemic equally hard, but they are doing one of the most important jobs out there.
Nurturing your young minds and helping to shape your futures. We all owe them a huge debt of gratitude – our future society depends on it.
So, a big thank you to them for all that they do. You have a wonderful proverb in your country – ‘When the moon is not full the stars shine more brightly’.
I see all of you children as the stars of this country, and I hope these difficult experiences have given you the motivation, empathy and compassion to become fully engaged citizens of tomorrow who will make The Bahamas the vibrant, life-affirming and soul-enriching place it is today.
Thank you once again for having us today and for such a warm welcome
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