[zozo_dropcap color=””]D[/zozo_dropcap]iflora picked me up at the Austin Airport after I requested a Lyft ride. But she was not alone. A man was sitting on the passenger seat.  Who was that man, I wonder? I sat on the back. She made sure I was feeling comfortable with the music and the temperature and I had no complains. The man mumbled something I couldn’t hear but at what Diflora responded: We have a passenger Glenn, we will go home after.

The ride continued and so it did our conversation not just between Diflora and I but the three of us creating a really comfortable atmosphere. Every once in a while, she would grab his attention and asked him to be quite worried that the whole scenario would give her a lower rating. No worries ma – Glenn said while caressing her arm.

Diflora turned around to look at me and I could see on her eyes the story was about to be revealed. Diflora is not Glenn’s mother but his wife. Today Glenn was leaving the hospital after fighting a cancer. A real survivor that now is suffering from dementia as a consequence of the treatment. I felt lucky that I got to meet this family and their story. A story that it was about to make not just Diflora’s day but mine.

Almost at the end of our ride Glenn called her wife by her name. A simple action that left Diflora speechless. So, that she even missed our exit. It had been a year since Glenn had remembered his wife’s name. And now, in the streets of Austin with a stranger in the back that mysterious man made her wife the happiest women just by saying her name.

Diflora, keep riding cause you and your husband still have a long way to go. And, no worries about the rating; life is giving you 5 stars.

[zozo_dropcap color=””]E[/zozo_dropcap]mily’s smile. I could finish my description right here but I feel it wouldn’t be fair. Emily has been my dental hygienist for a while and now she is leaving with her husband to Texas. Even though her lover is already there she is still has 2 month left in San Francisco before doing the final move. In the meantime, Emily is arranging all her paperwork to practice in the new State. She admitted to me; one of the hardest part of leaving is saying goodbye to the office and her colleagues. And I have no doubt it’s a two-way street. But hey, they are upgrading on square footage and she is excited about that! I will miss the caring, soft, gentle and smiley Emily I met. Who will give me now conversation before, after and during the cleaning?

Enjoy your new adventure Emily! Smile back at you.

[zozo_dropcap color=””]I[/zozo_dropcap]t was so easy to start a conversation with Melina. All began with a game trying to figure out where she was from. The only clue I had was her accent and I kept failing at every try. I finally gave up.  Melina is from São Paulo, Brasil, and moved to San Francisco almost a year ago.  During this time she has already been to 3 different english schools in the city trying to keep her student visa active. In order to pay for her tuitions she is working for Lyft, and she loves it! She is not just making money out of it but also improving her speaking skills.  Unfortunately, Melina can not keep jumping from school to school and she can not afford to go to City College. The only option she is left with is to find a job as an accountant that can sponsor her.  Melina was full of energy and had a big smile, I truly wish her dreams come true.

[zozo_dropcap color=””]M[/zozo_dropcap]atteo thought I was Italian. Close, from Barcelona, I said. He recently arrived in San Francisco and is living with his girlfriend in Mill Valley. It’s all really new and you can see it on his face. Matteo moved from Naples to be with his American lover who he met during a gastronomy course in Italy. A love story in San Francisco that has him wonder how to stay in the States longer. He would like to improve his English and he  will probably take English classes. However, what he really wants is to learn more about wines. With a big smile, he tells me he wants to take a Sommelier course. Why not?! I ask and affirm at the same time. Go for it!. He sounds so excited, there’s no doubt in my mind he will make it happen.

Matteo has the energy of a new arrival that wants to absorb everything around him. And trust me, that’s the way it should be. I’ve been there. As you told me as I was leaving:

Ciao bello! 

[zozo_dropcap color=””]K[/zozo_dropcap]hin approached me with just a simple “Everything ok?”. And it only took that question for us to start a warm conversation full of laughs at the airport lounge. She moved to San Francisco in 2000 from Rangoon leaving behind a big family.

Her father got married 4 times and she was the daughter of the 3rd relationship.  Now Khin is the one that tighted the knot with a man who, like her, works at the airpot. She works in the evenings while her husband has the morning shift.  They don’t see each other too much except on Mondays and Sundays when she’s off.  She explains to me she works basically for her 8 and 18 years old daughters. No money for me, all for them. My husband is rich Khin said breaking into laughs while jumping into another story without giving me enough time to guess whether the last sentence was true or false. But I didn’t care, we were having fun.

Before it was time for her to leave, she came and gave me a hug. A sweet one.

Her energy and kindness while working for others is something I will never forget. It’s because of people like her I feel comfortable saying… Yes, everything is ok.

[zozo_dropcap color=””]A[/zozo_dropcap]lberto looks shy. He moved to Paris from a city nearby Milano nine years ago and for the last two he’s been running his own business: a “pizza by the slice” boutique (Pizza-art). We spoke mixing Italian, French, Spanish, and English. Each sentence was a multi-lingual combination.

Looking at him preparing my slices of pizza was like attending a private dance between the ingredients and him. Every move was thought out and there was no room for mistakes. All of a sudden I became an attendee to a show I couldn’t stop watching.

Unfortunately, his business is financially unstable and I hope Alberto can dance for a long time. Long enough so that when I come back, his newborn will be running around.

[zozo_dropcap color=””]Y[/zozo_dropcap]assin is 20 years old and for the first time, he is traveling to Paris. He is nervous and last night he couldn’t sleep. He has 6 hours left to rest but I doubt he can even get to a disconnected mode. All he can probably think of is the girl he is about to reunite with.

They met 2 years ago but it wasn’t until last summer that they decided to date. Her family spends their holidays in Begur, a small coast town in Catalunya, where Yassin works at a beach bar during summertime to pay for his dream of becoming a solar engineer.

His girlfriend’s father has been really nice to him. He offered to visit them in Paris on several occasions but now that he has a love motivation he decided to take the offer and pay a trip to Paris out of his own pocket despite her father’s free-of-charge invitation.

As the train is approaching, Yassin explains to me that his girl has a twin. I joke about not to confuse them and not to get into the wrong bedroom. He laughs. Hopefully not, but I always confuse their names and they get upset, he says. I laugh.

Another love story is about to be written in Paris. I got to know the beginning.