How we began

Dear Friends,

We first met in 1997, in the easy, unplanned way that many good South African stories begin. A group of friends from my part time job at Exclusive Books gathered for coffee at Tribeca in Brooklyn, Pretoria. I arrived with my girlfriend. I left with a memory I could not shake. Across the table sat Marnella, full of life, warmth, and something I could not describe. Without thinking, and very unwisely in front of everyone, I told her I had never met a girl with so much “sparkle”. Years later we might call it vibe. At the time, it simply felt true.

Life carried on. I finished my master’s degree in business psychology and started my first job in HR. Relationships shifted. Mine ended in March 2000. Marnella and I still moved in the same friend circles, crossing paths now and then, never quite aligning. Then, in 2001, at Antjie Krog’s book launch at Exclusive Books Menlyn, the story tilted. There was laughter, too much wine, and the strange honesty that lives only in late nights. By morning she was gone, leaving confusion, curiosity, and silence behind her.

Months later I needed a date for a company Christmas party and asked her to come. She arrived with a striking red and black weave, regal and confident, like a Nubian queen who had stepped into the wrong era. The room disappeared. We talked, danced, and forgot everyone else existed. For a moment, the world felt simple. Then reality returned.

Soon after, she left for California to work as an au pair. She
invited me to come. I chose to stay and build my career. I told her I
would not do long distance. If she went, she would go alone.

And so, she did.

(Part II in next weeks News Letter)

Cheers, Andreas