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There is no way to prepare a new parent for how much a baby will change their whole lives. No matter how many months expectant moms and dads spend preparing, there is something incredible that happens when that baby enters the world that’s indescribable. Prince Harry is now feeling that firsthand.

The giddiness Prince Harry feels for his newborn son comes across clearly on video and in photos. It’s so obvious—the Duke of Sussex is overjoyed at becoming a father. That’s why it was probably so difficult for him to bid his family goodbye on Thursday, May 9 for his scheduled appearance at the Invictus Games.

While there, Prince Harry opened up at his wonder over fatherhood and the one thing he never expected.

Prince Harry
Prince Harry | Max Mumby/Indigo/Getty Images

Prince Harry spoke candidly about fatherhood with a solider at the event

It makes perfect sense that Prince Harry would make a point to appear at the Invictus Games in The Hague. After all, he created the multi-sport event for wounded, injured, or sick armed service members or veterans to compete together. It’s also the place where he and his wife, Meghan Markle, made their first public appearance together in 2017.

Though Prince Harry must have had a hard time leaving his son for the first time to attend the event, getting out in public gave him a chance to speak to others about the miracle of new fatherhood. While there, Harry had a poignant conversation with Dennis van der Stroon, a veteran who is planning to compete for The Netherlands Invictus team.

As he explained to Hello, his encounter with the Duke of Sussex was “amazing and emotional.”

What did Prince Harry say about becoming a father?

The veteran and Prince Harry may lead very different lives, but they share one important thing in common: fatherhood. “At a certain moment, we just got connected on this level,” van der Stroon told Hello. “We talked about how my wife, Mireille, is 20 weeks pregnant with our first child, a girl, and he told me how special it was that his son has just been born.”

“Harry talked about how having a small child was his new focus and new goal and I told him how a couple of months ago, I was struggling with my mental health but my wife’s pregnancy has given me a goal,” he continued.

“Above all he said he was just amazed by the miracles in the world, and how his child has made a lot of people happy. He also told me he’s really happy that his son is so far very quiet. But he also told me not to make too many plans and that there’s no way you can plan for when the baby arrives.”

Becoming a father has made Prince Harry miss his mom all over again

It’s heartbreaking to witness just how much Princess Diana’s death affected her youngest son, who was only 12 years old when she passed away. Dennis van der Stroon also lost his mother and the two men bonded over the shared loss.

“I told Harry about my mother and we talked about our shared experience of missing a mum,” van der Stroon said. “He said missing a mother is like missing some kind of security, how you need that as a son and it falls away when you lose your mother. He said he meets a lot of people in his work who have lost a mother, father, sister, brother or relatives and when he hears their story, as he heard my story, he said he doesn’t feel so alone.”

Even in the midst of grief, a new baby has a way of showing the world there is hope after every storm.

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