Meghan Markle, 42, resides in a grand Montecito mansion with her husband Prince Harry and their two children, Prince Archie and Princess Lilibet, but her childhood living situation was very different.
The Duchess of Sussex came from humble beginnings, and in a resurfaced clip, she spoke about her experience of having to split her time between "two homes" growing up when her parents divorced.
Shared by @meghanprinceharrynews fan page on Instagram, the clip shows Meghan reciting a poem she wrote as a child where she expresses feeling sad and wanting to "live that nuclear life" instead of feeling stretched between two houses. The video clip of Meghan recalling the prose off by heart was from Harry and Meghan's Netflix docuseries, which first aired in 2022.
The poem in full reads: "Two houses, two homes, two kitchens, two phones,
"Two couches where I lay, two places that I stay,
"Moving, moving here and there, from Monday to Friday I'm everywhere,
"Don't get me wrong, it's not that bad
"But often times it makes me sad,
"I want to live that nuclear life,
"With a happy dad and his loving wife,
"A picket fence, a shaggy dog,
"A fireplace with a burning log,
"But it's not real, it's just a dream,
"I cannot cry or even scream,
"So here I sit with cat number three,
"Life would be easy if there were two of me."
Meghan's mother Doria Ragland and father Thomas Markle lived together when she was born, but they sadly split two years later. Meghan moved with her mother into a top-floor apartment on South Cloverdale Avenue, Mid-Wilshire, and her father had an apartment behind the Hollywood strip, where she would visit.
Elsewhere in the hit Netflix show, Meghan and her mom revisited the property where they used to live, driving by to reminisce about their time there. "We had our parties back there," pointed out Doria as they cruised past.
Yoga teacher Doria now lives in View Park-Windsor Hills in LA, which is around two hours away from Harry and Meghan's family home.
Zen Montecito mansion
The Duke and Duchess of Sussex live in a nine-bedroom property, officially named the Chateau of Riven Rock. It has an array of luxurious features that wouldn't be out of place in a five-star holiday resort or a royal palace. Think games room, wine cellar and swimming pool!
The couple are besotted by their dream home and in an interview with The Cut, Meghan has revealed it was love at first sight when it came to their big real estate purchase. "We did everything we could to get this house. Because you walk in and go… Joy. And exhale. And calm. It's healing. You feel free," she told the publication.