Welcoming New Experiences

Meet Brenda & Jozef – Welcoming New Experiences

After receiving several photo submissions from one of our Pictou County Life Members, I thought I would reach out to thank her and take the opportunity to get to know her better and learn her story. That is how I met Brenda.

One of the first things I discovered while chatting with Brenda is how kind, bubbly, optimistic and adventurous she is. When I asked her to tell me a little bit about herself, she quickly replied, “I was born in Puerto Rico. My father was in the United States Air Force. I was raised in Michigan, and I met my hubby playing Euchre online.” I laughed and thought wow, that sounds interesting! So, I asked her to tell me more. “Jozef asked if he could visit me, I said sure. I was living in Michigan and he was living in Barrie, ON at the time,” she smiled, “He asked me if I would like to visit Canada, and I said yes. While I was there, he asked me to marry him,” she giggled, “I said YES! I was 40 years old, and that was 15 years ago.” I smiled, “Awe, that is so romantic.” She glowed, “We will be married for 14 years on March 29th.”

Ironically, Jozef was also a member of the Air Force so moving around is something that Brenda was used to. I wondered how they ended up in Pictou County so I asked her. “I have been to 30 states and to every province except the northern part. And when my hubby was retiring from the Air Force in Cold Lake, Alberta, we didn't want to live in the States and didn't want to live in BC where he is originally from. I always wanted to live by the ocean, so we decided on Nova Scotia, why not, “she giggled. I commented, “Wow, you are really adventurous!”

They recently discovered Pictou where they found their new perfect home and moved in on September 30, 2021. I asked, “What do you love the most about living here?” She smiled, “I love the farmland on one side and ocean on the other. I love that we have lots of room to walk our dog and plant a garden.” Curiously I asked, “Do either of you know people here or have family here?” She replied, “No, just me, Jozef and Patches our spoiled little dog that we love to pieces,” she continued, “We are hoping to do some volunteering so that we can get out and meet people in our new community.” I quickly replied, “It was a pleasure to meet you, Brenda and welcome home...oh, and Happy Anniversary!!”

Our conversation reminded me of how important it is to make everyone in our community feel welcome. Everyone wants to feel a sense of belonging. One of the best ways to feel this is through friendship. It struck me that every friendship basically starts with one simple word – Hello. Who knows what can happen from this simple interaction?

I think Simon Sinek summed it up best, “Life is beautiful not because of the things we see or do. Life is beautiful because of the people we meet.”