Our calendar sheet in October: Sonny (60) and Ramon (66) were very sure of their love for each other early on. When the couple from Surinam married, she was only 15 and he was 21. They met in third grade at school and have been married for 45 years. Today, they live in Utrecht in a retirement home and have two daughters, a son and already three grandchildren. While he thrives and flourishes with his hobby as DJ at weddings and celebrations, she used to be in charge of the entire farm, the animals they raised and the vegetables they cultivated, when they lived in Surinam. Their recipe for a long-lasting relationship are trust and love. Even if they are sure that they wouldn’t do anything differently if they could relive their lives, they believe that this kind of relationship is barely possible nowadays. Times have changed.
„Age does not protect you from love. But love, to some extent, protects you from age.“ (Jeanne Moreau)
Is there such thing as the „true love“ in our fast-paced world? René Schwerdtel, a photographer from Herchen, Germany, has set out on the quest to find the answer to precisely that question. He ended up not only with photographs charged with emotion, but also with touching insights into the lives of happy people. In their stories, they give us their very own recipes for strong, intimate relationships – sometimes raising a smile from us, but more often than not, giving us some food for thought. And all of these stories make one very important point: love means trust – and that means that fun, but also the occasional squabble, are two sides of the same coin. Each photograph comes with its own emotive story that shows how multifaceted love can be.
Immerse yourself in these inspiring love stories!
