Georg and I....

by Janice

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I first met Georg back in 1978  when farm-land was released to become  a new residential area,  homes were being built....and  we became neighbours.  Our two families got along well and our total of three boys became childhood friends, in fact they basically grew up together.

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Fast forward to 1993-94 when both marriages ended in divorce!

 

Some months later Georg and I spontaneously decided to share a glass or two of wine together out on his patio one warm August afternoon and both of us feeling sorry for ourselves shared our thoughts and feelings....both claimed we could never trust again, we had both been too hurt and I played with the idea of eventually moving back to Australia once my boys were on their feet...

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I wouldn’t be able to continue living in Switzerland.

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The afternoon became the evening, the wine had loosened our tongues, we did a lot of talking and then there was a kiss...a different kind of kiss than “just a peck on the cheek”!   That brought us to our senses as neither of us was ready or even looking  for a relationship, neither of us even wanted a new relationship so we avoided each other for something like 4 weeks.   We continued trying to avoid each other, but being neighbours, that was not possible for any length of time...

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We started going on walks or bike rides together, having cups of coffee or a glass (or two) of wine and gradually we realised that what was happening was right and good.   Having known Georg as a neighbour for so many years I knew beyond a doubt that he was kind, considerate and absolutely honest with a quirky dry sense of humour and a strong Christian faith...qualities that unfortunately I had not known in my previous marriage.

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So out of a neighbourly friendship, new respect, trust and love finally blossomed and we were married in 1996,  with the blessings of our three sons...3 months before I turned 50, as he told me  “he wasn’t going to marry a 50 year old woman” and “we shouldn’t wait any longer as neither of us were getting any younger”! 

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Georg and I had three separate holidays in Australia and he absolutely loved everything about this land on the other side of the world.   He was welcomed with open arms by my friends and family here.  One day he suggested the idea that we could retire to Australia once he reached retirement age.

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After thinking that thru, talking it over with our sons, we took the huge pioneer plunge  and packed our household into a container and sent it Down Under....We  had no idea where we would settle....”somewhere between Sydney and Brisbane” was the vague plan but we found our home within a couple of weeks of landing...or rather, God lead us to our home and from that point everything simply fell into place....

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So at age 65, here was my Georg far away from Europe and his homeland with no English.  He was a smart, intelligent man and learnt quickly, devoured books written in English but often felt his conversation-skills were very limited so, although he was (in some ways) a quiet man, he probably often  gave the impression of being overly reserved or withdrawn...which in fact he actually was not.  In his quiet way, Georg loved life to the full.

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We  both commented often that we have never regretted moving out here , it was the right thing to do, we love where we live, being closer to friends of old and have made new friends.... he often told me and our friends and family that “he had brought me back to my roots” and that made him very happy! 

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We get back to Switzerland  every year...that was part of “the deal”.    Our sons have all been to visit us a number of times...(martin is here today), so we had the best of both worlds.  Georg loved everything about our life here and was happiest sitting in his Liegestuehl (garden lounge) out on the veranda, soaking up the warm sunshine, listening to the birds and just “being”.

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We were married for 21 and a half wonderful years...I guess you could say, we were soul mates and I am eternally grateful for this wonderful, warm and generous  man who came into my life when I least expected it....he would say the same thing of me...we were greatly blessed.

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I loved him totally and life without him seems something which at this point I can’t even begin to imagine ...”min liebschte Schorscho, ich dankä dir, für alles..”

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