I have been planning on writing this post for a while now, about the very gorgeous and cute (mignon, I recall from an earlier blog) romance between Sasha and a french boy at school, called Vincent. As I started to write, I suggested to the kids that we could compose a poem, and Will's reply….Sasha and Vincent sitting in a tree, K I S S I N G. Not quite what I had in mind.
This romance deserves more than a childish rhyme, as this boy has persevered and pursued, and for his efforts alone, we should come up with something a little more romantic. Am thinking of something more along Shakesperean lines, but drawing a blank:
This romance deserves more than a childish rhyme, as this boy has persevered and pursued, and for his efforts alone, we should come up with something a little more romantic. Am thinking of something more along Shakesperean lines, but drawing a blank:
Sasha, Sasha, where for out thou Sasha?…has possibilities.
Vincent is a very handsome boy, with straight brown hair, blue eyes behind Austin Powers-style glasses, and often with a scarf and ankle/basketball style boots. In all, Trés Groovy baby!
He was recently voted D'élege de classe, for Sasha's grade, CM1. I have copied below the leaflet he handed out to the class..I would have voted for him too!
And just an aside, "J'aimerais aussi mettre des portes aux toilettes des garçons parce que les petites et les petits jouent dedans"…translation, I had no idea that the boys' toilets didn't have doors! Only after reading this, did Will and Sam explain that there are no doors (hence no privacy) in the boys' toilets and that both boys and girls freely run in and out of the bathrooms during recess and lunch. It's not only the big things that are different in France!
Now back to Vincent...I think what has captivated us most about him, is his pride and confidence. While shy to meet and talk with, he has shown no hesitation in sharing his love for Sasha with his parents, who have helped him create and write some of his masterpieces I'm sure, and his friends, who have on occasion been the bearer of Vincent's gifts to Sasha. While I remember some kiss chasey in primary school, I can't imagine that there would be many young Australian boys willing and able to declare their love so freely and unabashed. More and more, I do love this country!
Here are a few pearls from Vincent, that Sasha would like to share, and that careof this blog, will create such wonderful memories for us in the future:
It all started…with a small poem, sadly since misplaced, by the take-it-in-her-stride Sasha,
When the rain falls, you are the rainbow in the sky. The bar was set very high that day!
Followed not long afterwards by a very simple, "I love Sasha, you are beautiful Sasha"
Next, a love heart with,"Je t'aime" together with another verse, that he even gave a title:
Quand je te vois: Quand je te vois, je vois des yeux comme etoiles et tu es le plus belle
When I see you, I see your eyes like the stars, and you are more beautiful.
Ah, sigh!
A few gifts followed: A bracelet, a rose pulled from his backpack at school, the stem wrapped in foil.
Starting to get a little more serious and to the point, he wrote:
"You are beautiful. I love you. You are my girlfriend". No hidden messages there.
More words written (again in french), her name drawn creatively across coloured paper, were delivered to Sasha:
Some of those words:
Les cheveux sont comme les etoiles, qui brillant dans le ciel
Your hair is like the stars, which shine in the sky
Te es 100000 plus belle que le monde entier
In my heart there will always be a place
L'amour ça sent a être toi Sasha
Love like this feels to be you Sasha…or something like that
Feeling guilty now as I reflect writing this blog, Sasha had yet to reply formally to Vincent's attentions, other than a polite thank you and blush on receiving all of the above. I think she and I were both uncertain as to how to respond, and we probably expected his attentions to stop…as you have gathered by now, we were mistaken there!
So we agreed it was time. Continuing the origami theme, Sasha made Vincent a beautiful coloured 'chatterbox'. Do you remember those as a child? It has 4 quadrants, and you move each one depending on the number on the corner. You then move it again, matching the number of letters to the colour of the quadrant, eg. 4 times for pink. At the end of these 2 turns, the recipient nominates a colour or number, and the flap is lifted to reveal a statement, word, question etc.
Sasha decided she would use the 4 quadrants to thank Vincent, and let him know her (so far hidden) feelings. She wrote:
"Tu es tres gentil"
"Merci pour tous les cadeaux"
"Tu es tres cool"…and finally and most importantly for Vincent,
"Je t'aime"
I was so proud of her for doing this for him, and having the courage to present it to him at school. In classic Vincent style, he walked out of school that afternoon firmly holding his treasured chatterbox, and regularly lifting the flaps to re-read Sasha's words. Unrequited love no more!!
Over the past few weeks I have met Vincent's parents at school pickup, who are quite intrigued by this young Australian girl who has captured their boy's heart. When I told his Mum the other day, that our last day of school would be Friday 13th December..she stilled, almost shocked, "you mean not the 22nd"…paused again, thinking. Next I heard her talking with Sasha about swapping Skype addresses. I was rather relieved it wasn't a dinner invitation!
As I was putting the finishing touches to this blog, Sasha just happened to mention, "oh that's right, Vincent gave me something else on Monday"…well that 'something else', while a little hard to decipher Vincent's 9-year old but very lovely french handwriting, almost made me cry:
Je t'aime Sasha
I love you Sasha
I love you Sasha
J'aurai toujours une place dans mon coeur reviendra tu
I will never forget you and your beautiful eyes
Merci d'être mon amoureuse
Thank you for being my love
Wow!!
I hope they do Skype or better yet, write to each other. But even if they don't, this whole experience has created some wonderfully memorable moments, that we truly didn't expect when we imagined our time here.
Vincent has also set a very high benchmark as far as young suitors go, that I can't imagine will be reached or passed in Sasha's beaux yeux for a long time to come!
Now for La Piece de Resistance…a limerick written with the children, while having lunch today in the beautiful port town of Sete. Not quite Shakespeare, but Vincent and Sasha are children after all. Hope you like it, as we had fun writing it. Enjoy!
There was a young girl called Sasha
Who went to school in France
Where she met a young boy called Vincent
Who fell into a loveable trance
Gifts he gave and poems he wrote
Of love, stars and Sasha's beaux yeux
He pursued and adored this Australian girl
avec le brillant cheveux
A love unrequited was soon returned
Vincent was so happy and appeased
But alas all too late, as so soon
Sasha was to return overseas
A final note followed to bid Sasha adieu
And let her know she'd stay close to his heart
And that he would never forget his first love
Even though they are oceans apart
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