They say love is blind
Over60 community member, Ely Lazar, shares his candid love story about meeting the love of his life on a blind date and never looking back.
“You do know I’m a chiropractor?” That was one of the first things I asked when I called Adele on the phone in October 1985. I hadn’t yet met Adele, but we were “hooked up” on a blind date by a lady who knew both of us and believed we had something in common as – we had both just come out of relationships at the time.
When I rang the doorbell, a girl with reddish-blonde hair about age 12 appeared and yelled out, “Mum, there is an Arab at the door.” I had a deep tan at the time, which I suppose gave me an Arabic appearance. This was my first contact with Adele.
What really impressed me about the first date was that Adele – as a medical doctor – didn’t have issues with me as a chiropractor. This was rather foreign to me as my experience with the medical community was one of hostility or indifferent to my profession. I found out that Adele actually availed herself of chiropractic care and even referred patients to chiropractors. That was the first point in her favour.
The second point was that she was intelligent and attractive; our initial conversation involved discussing topics as diverse as relationships and cosmology. She obviously found some positive attributes to me. Both of us were determined that we were never going to get married again.
From that first blind date we were hooked, although we didn’t know it. Later I found out that Adele had made a list – before ever meeting me – of her requirements for a partner. She discovered that I fit almost all her criteria and more! Over time our relationship deepened and in 1989, marriage was the logical outcome.
Our relationship has grown immensely over the years. Based on our backgrounds, most thought it wouldn’t last. Adele is from a tiny hamlet, Doodlakine in Western Australia, and she grew up in a farming family. I am from big city Toronto, Canada and of European parentage. Despite these differences we have developed a passionate, loving and respectful relationship of shared values.
Over the years we have done a lot of travelling and in 2012 we took a big step; we sold our home, the cars, my practice and off we went, travelling for most of the year. It was a profound experience for both of us. Our relationship took another quantum leap, contrary to our children asking, “Aren’t you sick of one another, spending so much time together?”
Here we are in 2014. I retired from chiropractic two years ago and we now have a new business, Passionate Retirees, inspiring seniors to live fulfilling and adventurous lives for the rest of their years. We released our first book, Travel Secrets For Seniors in late 2013 with another e-book due out shortly.
It has been a great journey together and we continue to experience it in our late 60s. Amazingly, the first date may have been “blind”, but 29 years later our vision is clear.