[ad_1]
In 2006, I met a couple in their late 30s whose love story turned out to be my favourite kind: a childhood romance that has stood the test of time.
The husband, Rizvan, takes great pride in telling the story of how he and Shayla met. Both sets of parents worked in the Armed Forces. Both youngsters changed schools often.
They ended up in the same school in Class 8. On the first day of that school year, he says, he saw Shayla and knew she was the girl he wanted to marry.
It wasn’t easy, he adds, laughing. She was 13, serious and studious. But she seemed to like him; he had hope. Eventually, like turned to love. Two years later, tragedy: both families moved, to different cities.
Love letters and occasional phone calls helped keep their romance alive. Even when college took them to different continents, Rizvan’s resolve to marry Shayla remained intact. Shayla, on the other hand, was intent on building a career and marriage wasn’t on her mind.
He was in no hurry. He supported her as she grew to be a finance executive in Mumbai. Four years in, she felt settled enough to marry. When I met them, they had been husband and wife for 18 years, had three children and seemed immeasurably content in their happy, fun-filled home.
Two weeks ago, another such tale came my way. Tina and Varun met in Class 6. As with Rizvan and Shayla, much of their early romance played out over vast distances. By the time they were in college, at least they had email and video calls to help. Now in their mid-30s, they have been married nine years and are raising a daughter together.
I asked them who took the lead in keeping their romance alive, and they agreed it was Tina. A true romantic, she still gives him the most incredible gifts, Varun says. Last year, for their anniversary, she created a short film using clips from their vacations, and convinced a cinema hall to play it at intermission as a surprise.
Tina and Varun have been together 24 years. They have had serious lows (they both nod when he says this). One of their toughest spells was when they changed jobs at the same time. Another was when Varun lost his father and his mother moved in with them permanently.
What has kept them happy? Their love for each other and their certainty of each other’s loyalty, “and friendship”, Tina says.
This helps them communicate effectively. We are each other’s family, and family comes first, she adds.
It was reassuring to hear that even childhood sweethearts have to work at it, to keep their relationship healthy. But if ever there was a fairy tale come true, for me, it is tales like these. Don’t you just love it when childhood romances last?
(Simran Mangharam is a dating and relationship coach and can be reached on simran@floh.in)
[ad_2]
Source link
