Princess Kate Middleton issued a poignant message in honor of her 44th birthday.
“Even in the coldest, darkest season, winter has a way of bringing us stillness, patience and quiet consideration,” Kate said in a Friday, January 9, video statement shared via social media. “Where the stream slows just enough for us to see our own reflection, to discover the deepest parts of ourselves, alongside the whispers and pulse of every living thing.”
She continued, “I find myself reflecting on how deeply grateful I am, for the rivers within us flow with ease. Fears washed away, cleanse and purify. Come to peace with our tears, and discover what it means to be alive. To be at one with nature. A quiet teacher and a soft voice that guides. In memory, helping us to heal.”
In her video, Kate walked along a wintry path while dressed in an olive newsboy cap and matching jacket.
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“The Mother Nature series has been a deeply personal, creative reflection on how nature has helped me heal,” she captioned her Friday upload. “But it is also a story about the power of nature and creativity in collective healing. There is so much we can learn from mother nature, as we look to build a happier, healthier world.”
Kate was diagnosed with an undisclosed form of cancer in 2024, subsequently stepping back from her public duties to undergo treatment. She completed chemotherapy the following fall and declared in January 2025 that she was in remission.
“I wanted to take the opportunity to say thank you to The Royal Marsden for looking after me so well during the past year,” she wrote via Instagram last year. “My heartfelt thanks goes to all those who have quietly walked alongside [Prince] William and me as we have navigated everything.”
She added, “We couldn’t have asked for more. The care and advice we have received throughout my time as a patient has been exceptional. … It is a relief to now be in remission and I remain focused on recovery.”
Kate further stressed that she was still adjusting to her “new normal.”
“As anyone who has experienced a cancer diagnosis will know, it takes time to adjust to a new normal,” she wrote. “I am, however, looking forward to a fulfilling year ahead. There is much to look forward to. Thank you to everyone for your continued support.”
Kate, who has been married to 43-year-old William since 2011, has slowly returned to her public engagements.
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“You put on a sort of brave face, stoicism through treatment. Treatment’s done, then it’s like, ‘I can crack on, get back to normal,’ but actually, the phase afterwards is really, really difficult,” Kate recalled of her health scare during a July 2025 outing at an Essex hospital. “You’re not necessarily under the clinical team any longer, but you’re not able to function normally at home as you perhaps once used to.”
She continued, “Someone to help talk you through that, show you and guide you through that sort of phase that comes after treatment, I think is really valuable. It’s a roller-coaster, it’s not smooth, like you expect it to be, but the reality is you go through hard times.”
Kate’s cancer battle also affected her and William’s three children: Prince George, 12, Princess Charlotte, 10, and Prince Louis, 7.
“Everyone has their own coping mechanisms for these sorts of things, and children are constantly learning and adapting,” William revealed on Eugene Levy’s The Reluctant Traveler series in October 2025. “We try to make sure we give them the security and the safety that they need. We’re a very open family, so we talk about things that bother us, and things that trouble us, but you never quite know the knock-on effects that it can have. It’s just important to be there for each other and to kind of reassure the children that everything is OK.”
