Our Love Story (Part II)

A crazy, wonderful, life-changing year

If you read my last blog post you know that there've been a whole lot of changes and things happening in my life during the last year.

I started to list the most significant happenings in 'Our Love Story - Part 1' and will continue here in Part 2:

6. LOCKDOWN & HOMESCHOOLING (in Brazil)

The second time I went to Brazil, I didn't go alone.

We (my mum, my kids, and I) left Germany in mid-March to go to Brazil for one month. I don't know if you can imagine how happy I was!? After two months of a distance relationship, both Fabio and I were so much looking forward to finally being able to see each other again in real.

Another thing I was glad about was skipping one month of rainy, grey weather in Germany and therefore getting an overdose of summer, sun, and lightness in Brazil! It was just what I needed, especially in those crazy 'corona-times', which brought all kinds of changes and challenges to all of us somehow.

One of those challenges was the lockdown in Germany that included the closing of all schools and most of the stores and businesses.

So, when we went to Brazil we took the school supplies of the children with us and they had to do homeschooling there almost every day. And since Brazil also started to go into a lockdown, we weren't able to travel a lot or to do free time activities because most of the places were closed.

So, there wasn't a lot of distraction and we actually stayed most of the time on the property of the Fabio family's holiday home in Roseira, a little town in the state of Sao Paulo.

The house had a garden with beautiful palm and fruit trees and a little soccer field and... a POOL which the children enjoyed so much every day!!!

All in all, it was a very peaceful and quiet time, perfect for homeschooling and for the children to get to know Fabio better and spend some time together.

7. TRUST

Some people have asked me if I wasn't afraid of traveling to a faraway country with a lower hygienic standard and medical system during an epidemic.

Well, to those who are asking themselves the same question, let me tell you this: ANYTHING could happen ANYWHERE.

Maybe you think this was a reckless decision. But I have to admit that I am not afraid of this virus. I was never a person with many fears. I rather choose to trust in life and trust in God. I believe nothing in life happens without a reason. Sometimes we might think 'bad' things are happening to us. But every time I had a 'bad' experience in my life, these were the lessons I learned the most out of it.

So... I have a strong basic trust that only things will happen to us which are good for our inner growth.

Another thing I believe is that a strong and healthy immune system is much better protection against any kind of diseases and viruses than anything else.

To keep the immune system balanced it is important to go outside, to have sunlight, to be happy, to have good nutrition, to move the body, and to think positively.

I believe paying attention to these things is better than staying in the house, barely moving, having worries, and watching all these panic mongering news which just make us scared and increase negative thinking.

I don't deny that there are all kinds of viruses, diseases, and illnesses in this world (there always have been and probably always will be) and yes, it can be terrible, draining, and sad when someone gets a serious disease. But I don't believe that being afraid of diseases will help in any way, but rather to trust.

8. ENGAGEMENT

It wasn't the classic 'Hollywood-kind-of' engagement that you might first think of when you hear the word engagement.

Fabio had actually told me he wanted to marry me quite from the beginning after we got to know each other and of course I thought it was cute, but didn't take it that seriously. But we did talk about this topic sometimes and sure if everything would work out with us, why not?

I was always a romantic person and the family stands in the first place for me.

Before I went to Brazil the second time I was writing a love song for Fabio. It's called 'Trust in Love' and so far I've just published an audio version of it for my Patrons on my Patreon page.

The funny thing is that Fabio also wrote a love song for me quite at the same time and when we met again in Brazil he played and sang it to me. And in that song, he was proposing to me.

And in the song that I had written for him, I was kind of proposing to him, too, haha - sure, I'm an emancipated woman, I can propose to a man, what do you think!? ;)

Anyway, we said yes.

9. A NEW FAMILY MEMBER

I'm so happy and grateful that my children had the chance to come to Brazil with me and get to know Fabio. Noah had been a bit skeptical at the beginning, but he quickly gained confidence and became friends with him.

I am aware of the fact that this can be a challenging situation for children: the parents not getting along with each other, then separating and they just living with their mum for years... and then one day... suddenly there is this new man in mommy's life. And then in their lives, too.

So that’s probably one of the reasons why it took me so long to find a new partner in life. Because it’s a serious matter. It’s not something to play around with. And I’m glad I waited until I felt ready to opening up myself, to trust in love (partnership) again, and secondly until I felt that 'our life' (mine and my kids') was ready for a new chapter in life. A wonderful chapter that should never end.

When the children and I went to Brazil it was so naturally beautiful and familiar as if we've been a 'team' for years.

I think children are amazing when it comes to getting to know new people and making new friends. They are open and don't have prejudices.

I always taught my kids to be open and friendly to everyone and they really are.

So we were having a good time together and it wasn’t easy for anyone of us to say goodbye at the end of our stay.

10. GOODBYE & WAITING ...

After coming back to Germany, all we had again was communication via the Internet. And this time we didn't know how much time it would take for us to be even able to see each other again.

Because of Covid-19, the borders of Brazil were closed now, too, just like in all Europe. The European Union put up a travel ban which made it impossible for people outside of Europe to travel to a European country. And the infections in Brazil were rising up quickly which made it even more hopeless to see each other again in a foreseeable period of time.

So we were back to the far-distance-relationship and this time all we had was to wait. To wait until the situation would change and the travel ban would be lifted.

At first, we both were confident that it would get better soon. But it didn't seem like anything would change so quickly. And as the weeks passed by and then months, we realized that it could take many months more before it would be possible for us to see each other again.

picture from washingtonpost.com article about binational couples

The only comfort we had in this time was to know that we were not alone in this situation. There were (and unfortunately still are) thousands of binational couples who were not able to see each other due to the travel ban.

We found out that many of these people connected with each other and started the campaign #loveisnottourism for lifting the travel ban for binational couples so that they would finally be able to meet each other again and take their loved ones in their arms.

We joined the 'movement' and got some useful tips and advice from this group.

The success stories of couples who made it to see each other again inspired and motivated us to stay strong and persistent, even when it was hard sometimes to not know what was coming. This feeling of uncertainty was dragging us down sometimes. But love and hope were always stronger.

Whoa, this blog post has already gotten long, again.

I guess there must be a third part coming soon!

For now, I thank you so much for reading our story and I really hope you've enjoyed it!

I would be very happy if you could leave a little comment and/or like (by clicking the heart button at the end of the blog) for me to know whether you like this story or not.

Thank you so much for your love and support!

Yours, Sarah

Our Love Story (Part I)

A crazy, wonderful, life-changing year

Hey beautiful souls,

We're in the mid of January 2021 and we are all looking back on a more or less crazy and challenging year 2020.

For me, it was a year full of changes and happenings, joy and tears, challenges and achievements, struggles, and success...

All in all, I can say it was a life-changing year and I am grateful for every single day and moment of it.

I hope you are all doing well and came safe and healthy into the new year!?

I also hope that you forgive me that I was so inactive here in my blog and also on my Instagram, Facebook, YouTube, and Patreon account for many months.

SO, so often I wanted to sit down and write something or make a new video or at least share some glimpses of my life with you, but honestly, there was just SO much happening that I either just didn't find the time for it or I didn't feel inspiration for it.

The whole last year was so intense that I feel like the time just flew by so quickly that I wasn't able to quite 'catch' it. And another thing is that I really enjoyed simply living in the moment, totally present, without interrupting by trying to catch these moments on camera and putting them into pictures and words...

HOWEVER, I will try to do my BEST to share the most special moments and happenings of my year 2020 with you!

1. BRAZIL

As most of you who are following me on Instagram and/or Facebook have probably seen, I've been traveling to Brazil at the very beginning of 2020 - or no, it was even the end of the year 2019, just after Christmas, when I took my flight to Sao Paulo, Brazil.

I've celebrated one of the best New Year Eves of my life, followed by one of the best years of my life!

The pictures above are just a little glimpse of this wonderful, amazing time there. I went there for three weeks. Alone. Without my children. It was the first time in my and their life that we've been away from each other for such a long time and I have to admit that this was the hard part of the story. It was a kind of sacrifice for both me and my children. But in the end, it was worth it.

2. LOVE

So, the reason why I went to Brazil was... love. But let's start the story from the beginning: Fabio and I got to know each other through social media. I actually never really believed that falling in love could happen that way, but I was taught differently.

At first, we were just writing a lot and then started talking with each other via video call. We found out that we have many things in common like hobbies, interests, talents, spirituality, and exchanged our thoughts and ideas...

It didn't take very long for us to fall in love. And, well, naturally at one point we both wanted to meet each other in 'real-life'.

But of course, it wasn't that easy for neither one of us. For him mostly because of the quite expensive flight ticket. For me both for financial as well as family reasons.

But it seems as if it was destiny for us to meet and everything worked out somehow for us like magic.

Actually, my parents made the biggest birthday gift ever for me and that was the flight ticket to Brazil (and back of course). I am still so deeply grateful for this very special gift!

So, I went there, and getting to know each other in real was even better than we both had imagined before!

The video I posted above is a song that we both wrote together in Brazil and recorded in the beautiful and cozy 'Sea and Forest Yoga Hostel' in the jungle of Trindade, Rio de Janeiro.

3. FAR DISTANCE RELATIONSHIP

After I came back home to Germany, I was both happy and a bit sad, too.

Happy to finally be back together with my children, but sad for not being able to see Fabio anymore for probably a long time.

All we had now was communication through the internet, just like before. But at least we still had this possibility. And really, I've never felt so grateful before for these modern achievements of technology! Nowadays we take it so much for granted, but isn't it amazing how we can communicate with people all around the globe and even for free!?

However, it wasn't always easy. We are living in a different time zone. So, when it was 3 PM in Germany, it was just 10 AM in Brazil. Sometimes it was difficult to find a good time to talk, fitting for both of us. But we still managed to call each other every day and spend some time together to exchange thoughts and make plans.

4. CORONA

Who would have thought that the year 2020 would be such a weird and crazy year, as it turned out?

When this topic was becoming very present in all the media in Germany, all over Europe, and in the U.S., it was still not a big deal in South America at that time. So, when the politicians here started to set up more and more restrictions and regulations, I started to worry if it would even be possible for Fabio and me to see each other again in the foreseeable future.

When the borders of Germany were already closed for tourists from other countries, I got a strong feeling that if I wouldn't take the chance to visit Fabio again before Brazil would close its' borders too, it might take a long time for us to see each other again. And my feeling was right, as it turned out later.

5. BRAZIL AGAIN, THIS TIME WITH MY KIDS & MOM

I checked the prices for flights to Brazil and found out that they were surprisingly low due to covid.

I talked with my mom about it and my parents decided to help us out once again! May they forever be blessed for this generosity!

This time, my children would come with me and get to know Fabio and a bit of Brazil, too. And even my mum decided to come with us. She already had been to Brazil once when she was a young woman and traveled to South America. At this time she fell in love with a man in Peru and stayed there for three years. But that's another story... Anyway, she loves to travel and took the chance to escape the German lockdown, just like the kids and I did. And we didn't regret it.

Wow, as this blog post is getting super long, I think it's better to take a little break here and continue tomorrow with Part II.

I am so happy that I finally found the time AND motivation to sit down and write again, after such a long time. I really missed it!!!

Thank you so much for reading this! I hope you are fine and I would be happy to see you again, very soon.

Lots of love,

Sarah