JEAN & MARIA
At their mutual friend Angela’s family home in Heidelberg, Jean, a Parisian, and Maria, a Lebanese-Brazilian from Sao Paulo, first met in the late 1960s. Both in their 20s, they crossed paths at a Christmas celebration, chatting in German, a second language for him and a fourth for her. They were immediately drawn to each other and felt a deep cultural connection to their Arabic roots.
Maria, a biology student, was working on research in Germany that would later become the topic of the PhD she completed in Brazil.
Jean knew Angela’s family from a high school French-German student exchange.
When the two met, he had a year of obligatory military duty in France ahead of him, followed by civil engineering studies.
After Christmas, they took a short, platonic road trip to Vienna before continuing their life paths. They sometimes heard about each other through Angela, as they took on divergent career and family directions.
She ultimately settled in London, and he in Paris.
Occasionally, coupled with their spouses, they briefly ran into each other at Angela’s home.
When they re-met in 2016, at Angela’s husband’s 70th birthday party, the spark of long ago was reignited. Both their marital situations had changed, and it took Jean no time to initiate daytrips from Paris to London, an easy 2.5-hour Eurostar Chunnel trip.
By then, they were in their 70s and had full lives, so they spent time together once a month, alternating between Paris and London.
What really cemented their now intimate relationship was their daily written communication between visits, still in German.
Maria eventually suggested they switch to writing in French, a language she had learned in her native Sao Paulo. “It’s quite difficult for two foreigners to write in a foreign language,” she says, “so we decided to write in French and speak in either French or German.”
Even a lifetime later, they found they had a lot in common. Both loved to read, pursued strong cultural interests, and had committed family connections.
“In 2018, we started taking road trips in the UK, France, and Germany. We just had fun exploring landscapes and each other,” they echo.
Jean admits he was too shy when they met in their 20s to pursue a relationship. “It would have been simpler if we’d started this earlier,” says Maria, “but we weren’t ready then.”
Their relationship has strengthened through the pandemic, with daily missives, road trips when possible, and many ongoing conversations about big and little things.
“It’s the dialogue that helps you really learn about a person,” says Maria. “And the companionship and care that keeps it all going.”
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