It is often said that souls have their connections beyond borders and titles. Prince Harry's cosmic ties begin under the expansive African horizon, not merely by birth, but by a sense of belonging. From being a discontented royal to an international public figure, he long ago learned that royalty is not only quantified in crowns but also in precious connections. Growing up under the public eye, having been tormented by monumental losses upon which every unknown being had an unsolicited opinion on, the young British Prince found one of his greatest affections flourishing on the other side of his homeland.

The late Princess Diana's son discovered a second home in the love and insight of someone he could identify as a mother figure.

Tania Jenkins, a Botswana-based wildlife filmmaker and conservationist, owner of AfriScreen Films, is of no royal bloodline, yet her connection with the British prince is one born of a deep emotional bond, transformation, and healing. It took off in the late 1990s, not long after the death of Princess Diana, specifically around 1997-1998, when Prince Harry flew to the majestic wilderness of Botswana to escape from grief. Jenkins and her husband, safari filmmaker Mike Holding, opened their home and hearts to him. It was in just a single moment when the word "mom" escaped his mouth while referring to Jenkins, per Hello magazine, and it stayed the same forever.

Though for Prince Harry, there is only one "mum", one afternoon, he found himself under the familiar warmth of a mother's nagging from Jenkins. "Thereafter, I called her Mom all the time. It felt good. For both of us," he afterwards reminisced to the magazine. That moment would become the core of their special, self-designed mother-son bond. On Botswana's endless savannahs, a boy battered by loss discovered not only escapism but solace, not only in his friends but in the presence of a mother figure.

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The familial bonds discovered in a foreign land outlasted his trip as Prince Harry's spirit remained unfettered, healed, and grounded.

Prince Harry refers to Tania Jenkins and her husband Mike Holding across his memoir Spare as "Teej and Mike," devoting a special acknowledgment to them, referring to them as his second family in Botswana. The couple had been a significant source of support for the Duke of Sussex despite sharing no genetic connection. Jenkins and her house in Botswana felt like a sanctuary to the prince upon his first visit to the country, soon after his mother passed away. Away from the paparazzi and headlines, a grieving Prince Harry also found several lifelong friends on that trip who helped him heal. He was dating Chelsy Davy at the time he met the couple who took him in like their own son.

Most recently, he went off-grid during his solo trip in Africa while visiting an Angolan minefield to raise awareness for The Halo Trust’s landmine-clearing efforts following the footsteps of his mother. The father of two reportedly visited Jenkins' house in nearby Botswana for a three-day stay at that time. Despite tempestuous controversies, Prince Harry reportedly made sure to spend time with his old friends and second family to clear his headspace and get away from his phones and emails, only to return to his wife and children in Montecito after a restorative time.

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Did you know about Prince Harry's second mom? Share your thoughts about their precious relationship in the comments.