With the eyes of the world on Princess Ingrid Alexandra, a new family member is using his platform to share his thoughts on Norway’s future queen.
Durek Verrett, Princess Märtha Louise’s fiancé, took to his Instagram account to share that he thinks Norway is lucky to have Princess Ingrid Alexandra. Sharing a photo of the 18-year-old royal from Thursday’s government dinner, Durek wrote: “Gratulerer med dagen Princess Ingrid Alexandra,” which means “Happy Birthday Princess Ingrid Alexandra,” in Norwegian.
“Since the day we met, you always made me feel loved and acknowledged in the family. Your warm smile across the room at me is always a feeling of grace and kindness. We have the best time together. You are a blessing to Norway to be their future Queen. It is an honor to become your future uncle. I look forward to more times together. Last night your speech was elegant and poised with true heart as you are my dear.. love you! I am so happy to be here for your belated Birthday celebrations.”
Durek and Princess Märtha Louise became engaged earlier this month after dating since May 2019. In an Instagram post, Princess Märtha Louise shared: “I am so happy to announce that I am engaged to Shaman Durek, the one who makes my heart skip, the one who sees me and acknowledges me from my highest potential, who makes me laugh and who I can be vulnerable with. Love transcends and makes us grow. And I am so happy to continue to grow with this beautiful man. Thank you to all my friends and family who have stood steadfast by our side.”
The American-born shaman has made controversial statements in the past relating to spirituality but has always enjoyed a very close relationship with his Norwegian fiancée and her children—and now, he’s publicly sharing that the closeness continues with his extended family.
Durek made his royal debut at Thursday evening’s government reception for his future niece’s belated birthday celebrations, joining Princess Märtha Louise for the official dinner. He was also at Friday evening’s gala dinner, where he would have had the opportunity to meet members of the royal families of Sweden, Denmark, the Netherlands, Belgium and Luxembourg.
In an interview with People, Princess Märtha Louise and Durek said that they weren’t rushing into a wedding date: “We have many ideas of what we want, but we want to take our time with this to make it very special for ourselves, our families, and our friends. We don’t have a date in mind at the moment, but we will share it once we have decided.”