Category: Love

Only in France!

Published on by Brigitte Nioche4 Comments

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The world is changing – and for the better when you are a 64 years old woman (Or older)!

Watching the new President of France, Emmanuel Macron give his victory speech last night his words resonated and so did his boyish young face, but then he is only 39 years old, making him the youngest man ever to be elected president in France.

At the end of the speech he was joined by his wife, a pretty, elegant woman, who at one moment gently kissed his hand. Her name is Brigitte Trogneux and she is 64 years old – no, this is not a typo or faked news, she really is 64 old.Image result for photos brigitte trogneux macron

Can you imagine this happening in our country? I don’t think so. Our puritan ancestors who are still hanging around could not handle it. But then the French are different, especially  when it comes to personal relationships –  they take life in stride instead of fighting it.

As a woman of a certain age myself I have high hopes for the First Lady of France to change the dynamics about older woman; of letting the world see that there is no cut off age of what a woman can do including having a much younger man love her.Image result for photos brigitte trogneux macron

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I don’t only share her age but also her name – Brigitte – but that is where the similarities stop. Unfortunately for me I am not as lucky as she is to have a handsome and much younger husband. But as we say in German – was nicht ist kann noch werden– You don’t speak German?  Well this is what it means  – What is not can still be……..

VIVE LA FRANCE!

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And never forget – A Smile Changes Everything!

Brigitte

 

A New Year – A New Beginning – Or More Of The Same?

Published on by Brigitte NiocheLeave a comment

Christmas has come and gone and a new year is facing us. But before we get there New Year’s resolutions have to be made.

Oh, I know all about them – about keeping them and not keeping them, and eventually forgetting them.  How does the saying go ‘the way to hell is paved with good intentions’ meaning; the intention to engage in good acts often fails. It points up the principle that there is no merit in good intentions unless they are acted on.

Therefore, not setting us up to go to hell and to avoid being disappointed about not sticking to our New Year’s resolutions – maybe we shouldn’t make any? But if you can’t get out of the habit, settle for just a few. A few simple ones like skipping a dessert here and there, or calling your mother more often, or not looking at your iPhone every 5 minutes  – things that don’t need a major effort, because the truth is, if we get too ambitious our good intentions will become disappointments.

So keep your list of New Year’s resolutions short and easy, and start the New Year with cheers, a firework, and love. HAPPY NEW YEAR!

And never forget – A Smile Changes Everything

brigitte-headshotBrigitte

Greeting the New Year with fireworks over Central Park in New York

Greeting the New Year with fireworks over Central Park in New York

Love and Sex – Don’t Give Up On It!

Published on by Brigitte NiocheLeave a comment

Does love and sex have an expiration date?  Certainly not! And the men and women who live into their 90s and beyond prove this again and again.

For example, we read a lot about what is going on in retirement homes – and it’s a lot – or about couples in their 80s getting married. Or how seniors who go-on line to find a new partner after their wife or husband died, which the many over 50 dating sites confirm.

Of course when going on line chances of success might depend on how far away someone is from 70. Being 40 or 50 or 60 might give more choices, but that should not hold one back from trying. A friend of mine just told me that his 90 year old father whose wife died recently went on a dating service site to check things out.couple-in-egypt-jpeg-2

Oh no, please don’t shatter my believe in love and romance by telling me he is only looking for a housekeeper. I am the eternal optimist when it come to love. I think you can be in love at 20 and at 100, or anywhere in between.

Many older women say ‘not for me anymore.’ Do they really say ‘no?’ Or are they afraid of not finding somebody, so they have shelved that part of themselves.

Don’t misunderstand me, I am not saying we should always be on the prowl,  or hang out in bars, but we shouldn’t close the door when somebody comes walking through. And maybe you don’t want to be somebody’s wife again – been there, done that – but wouldn’t it be nice to have a companion to share your thoughts and feelings with? Maybe a friendship with benefits, as it’s called today. (The expression comes from a film by the same name which was released in 2011).

My friend Danielle – no, I won’t tell you her age, but she is no youngster – is  divorced for many years. Then she met James who had recently lost his wife and was lonely.  After a year he asked her to marry him but she said no.

“Don’t you love him?” I asked her

“Yes I do and I enjoy the sex, but I don’t want to be in a marriage again, and I don’t want to live with him either.”  A friendship with benefits indeed.

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Martin, an acquaintance who is about 40 years old told me, “A man can feel if a woman is available or not. It’s not something she does or says.  I can’t really put my finger on it but I can tell right away when I meet a woman if  she is willing.

Maybe the happiness gurus are right when they say your thought can control your destiny. Could that be why some good looking, attractive women are alone and others – not so  good looking – are with a man? Does their thinking make the difference and not their look?

It might be time to find out by changing how we think and open the door for a little fun, or even a friendship with benefits!!

And never forget – A Smile Changes Everything

brigitte-headshotBrigitte

 

 

 

 

IS BEING MULTILINGUAL THE ANSWER?

Published on by Brigitte Nioche4 Comments

This is the result of a study done in Luxembourg. A country where, through proximity of other countries, people speak at least 2 if not 3 languages – German, French, Luxembourgish.

The study was done by Magali Perquin of the Department of Health and it concluded that  compared with other countries the percentage of older people with dementia is lower in Luxembourg, 3.8 % against 6.4% in Europe, 7.1% in Latin America and 8% in Canada.  They believe there is a strong possibility that it is the result of people speaking several languages.

It has long been said that challenging the brain with mental exercises like Crossword Puzzles will help to keep individual brain cells alive. But maybe doing crossword puzzles is not your thing? Therefore, could learning French be an option?

No, it’s not too late. Quite the contrary. It might be the answer to the question many older or retired people ask – how can I find a new purpose or an activity to occupy my time? And if it is not French you want to learn but you wouldn’t mind speaking another language, think of your vacation or travel plans – going to Italy next? Wouldn’t it be nice to order your dinner in Italian?

An added advantage to taking classes – no, not  on-line- will be that you meet other like minded people – and you never know who you might meet and who is ready to go to Italy too!

couple in luxembourg

And never forget – A Smile Changes Everything

Brigitte

 

 

CHOICES – PICTURE OF THE WEEK

Published on by Brigitte Nioche5 Comments

IF YOU HAD THE CHOICE WHAT WOULD YOU PICK FOR YOUR DESSERT?

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THE PINK BRA OR THE BAGS FILLED WITH LINDT CHOCOLATE????

And never forget – A Smile changes everything.

Brigitte

 

FRIENDS – THOUGHT OF THE DAY

Published on by Brigitte NiocheLeave a comment

IF YOU DON’T CALL YOUR FRIENDS YOU WON’T HAVE ANY ONE DAY!

When you don’t hear from your friends it doesn’t mean that –

-they don’t care about you

– they forgot about you

  • – they don’t like you anymore
  • Often life gets in the way and their silence is no fault of yours or theirs – therefore, to keep them in your life make that call.

 

……….and never forget  – a smile changes everything

Brigitte

MOTHER’S DAY WITHOUT MY MOTHER

Published on by Brigitte Nioche9 Comments

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“When I am not here anymore you will miss me,” my mother said to me one day.

She had been particularly difficult that day and did not agree. But today, years after her death I know she was right.

Every year when I first realize that Mother’s Day is coming, my reaction is what has that got to do with me? I don’t have a mother and I feel sad and deprived.

Mothers are not always easy to deal with. When we become adults we often reject their advice. We don’t want them to tell us what to do. We don’t want to learn from their experience. We don’t want to hear about their life. We want to be our own person and sometimes I even went as far as saying:

“But that’s none of your business, it is my life!”  Yes, it is my life, but would I be here without her?

When the umbilical cord is cut it only separates our bodies, because for a mother the connection to her child is never gone. The feeling to protect, to love, to nurture is never severed. It is sad, therefore, that only when our mother has left us do we see the complete picture. But maybe that is natural too, because from the day we are born our mother is a given. We don’t know a world without her. We take her love, her care, her admiration, support and above all her presence for granted.  – DON’T – The day will come you wished you had another chance to tell her that you appreciate her love and affection.

Sunday it is Mother’s Day again. No, I don’t have to buy a card or a present. I don’t have to pick my mother up for lunch, but I will remember what she said every year on this day: “I am so lucky, I have Mother’s Day all year-long – I have the best daughter one can hope for.”

MAMI —  wherever you are now maybe you can hear me -“I miss you — not only on Mother’s Day – but all year-long!”

HAPPY MOTHER’S DAY! sunflower Avignon

Brigitte

 

94 YEARS OLD AND GOING ON 22

Published on by Brigitte Nioche2 Comments

Good Morning Everyone!

There are moments in life which are worth sharing, and the other day there was such a moment.

Leaving the Beauty Parlor near the bus stop the lady using a walker joined the waiting crowd. After a few minutes she asked, “Do you know when the M5 is coming?”

“It should be here by now” I replied. But it wasn’t and did not come for the next 35 minutes. After some chit-chat about the inadequate public service in New York, and how good the hairdresser is she just visited (her white hair was very nicely cut and set) she said, “You know I am 94 years old and will be 95 next month.” She did not wait for an answer but put her hand in her purse and pulled out a 3″x5″  picture of a beautiful girl.

“Look this is me when I was 22 years old, I was a WAVE during the war.” A lady standing close by looked over and remarked, “You should have that enlarged and framed.”

“Oh, I have.  It is hanging in my bedroom.” and the way she looked at her picture seemed like an out-of-body experience, like the young girl in the photo was somebody else. Somebody else who she knows for a long time and who is still around.

“So when is your birthday next month?” I asked

“May 11” and after a moment she continued “I don’t know why I am still here. Maybe because I had a good husband who looked well after me. He was Egyptian but Jewish.You know each week he would go out and buy two cartons of cigarettes,  one for me and one for him……. and see I am still here.”

There was no bus in sight yet and I asked her if she didn’t want to sit down. By now I was ready to sit down, but her answer kept me standing, making me wonder why at my age I wanted to sit down.

“No, thank you I just sat an hour at the hairdresser, and I will sit again in the bus.”

When the M5 came into view, she looked at me and asked, “Do you know what a WAVE is?” When she saw that I hesitated she continued, “The Girl in the photo!”

And while watching her navigate her walker to get into the bus, I suddenly realized she was not 94 – she was still a WAVE!

(Women Accepted for Volunteer Emergency Service during the Second World War)

Never Forget – A Smile Changes Everything

Brigitte

ARE YOU LONELY?

Published on by Brigitte NiocheLeave a comment

Good Morning Everyone

Hopefully the sun shines as brightly where you are as it does in New York today.

I went to the movies last night and want to share the experience with everybody who feels lonely sometimes or can’t find a purpose in  life.

The Meddler with Susan Saradon approaches – and solves  –  challenges we face when we lose a loved one, are retired, or the kids have moved on. It is humorous, yet serious in solving the challenges faced with. But above all it is inspiring! It gives hope!

And walking home – no I don’t want to give away the ending – I wished that every lonely woman will find her chicken coop.

Never forget – A  smile changes everything

Brigitte