My name is Ali and this is my love story.

I am a Bedouin, living in the Wadi Rum Desert in Jordan. I first met my wife Amnah when we were kids. Back then, both our families were living together. Amnah and I used to play with each other a lot. At the age of 13, she and her family left heading to the north of the desert. We stayed in the south. Moving places is normal in Bedouin life as people are constantly looking for proper hunting grounds.

Time passed by and when I turned 25 my mother strived to find a wife for me. It did not take long for her to find one … and to my surprise it was Amnah.
I was overly excited and couldn’t wait to finally meet her again because I clearly remembered this feeling of familiarity and trust that we shared when we were young. But still, I was scared. Scared about how she might react. What if she did not remember me? What if she wanted to become someone else’s wife?

In spring, I finally met her again. It is hard to describe the feelings I had that very moment. It was an unknown feeling. I was somehow irritated. But then we just looked into each other’s eyes and said “Hi” – and it felt right.

After a while our fathers met and we got the permission to get married. We didn’t wait any longer and finally got engaged. Soon after, we moved in together and three months later we celebrated our wedding. It felt like we had never been apart. Two years after our marriage, Amnah gave birth to our sons Bshar and Ziad. My little family was complete.

Today I feel the same way as when I met her, but I’m no longer irritated. I know that feeling. It is called love.

That’s the necklace Amnah gave me the day before she moved away. I kept it the whole time. I think this necklace was what brought us back together.

“People forget what you said. People forget what you did. But they never forget how you made them feel.