You don’t meet people by accident. And nothing in life happens by coincidence.

I met Wisal as soon as I landed in Paris at the railway station. It was late at night. Watching me struggle, she generously offered to help me carry my luggage.

“Wait, I’ll come to help you.” she declared as she came down the stairs to take my luggage with me.

That moment was just the beginning of our cosmic sisterhood.

“What are you doing in Paris?” she asked me after we carried my luggage from the station.

” Just travelling,” I replied.

It was her first day in Paris too.

She asked me if I was travelling with someone.

“I am travelling solo,” I replied.

“ME TOO!!!” she said as her eyes lightened up with excitement.

As we talked, we found out we were in the same hostel. And then, in the same room.

It was meant to be. I felt it in my heart.

Later that night, we bonded over our love for art, fashion, and vintage shopping. What brought us even closer is that we refuse to play by society’s rules.

It’s sad when people don’t get to follow their dreams because of the pressure from society.

It’s better to rebel and work hard for your dreams than regret them years later.

Sometimes it’s hard to be a woman. It’s especially tough if you are a brown woman. There’s are certain subliminal messaging that comes with it. You need to dress a certain way, be married by 30, and have kids.

We both very strongly rebelled against that and weren’t afraid to speak our minds.

At 16, Wisal ran away from her parents’ house. Her Moroccan parents never accepted her free artist soul. The culture was oppressed, and there was no room for her dreams.

“I felt suffocated all the time living in that house. So, I ran away. Living on the streets is better than my parents’ house.” she said.

While listening to her story, it felt as though we had known each other for a long, long time.

Imagine meeting a human version of yourself. Looking in a mirror. One soul, two bodies.

We spent the next eight days falling in love with the magic of Paris.

No agenda. No planning. No advanced reservations.

Wake up, and follow your heart.

We would wake up each day not knowing how our day would end. And, every day was better than the last. A magical dream that I never wanted to end.

One of the most memorable and favourite moments from that trip was this…

It was pouring rain. We decided to go out for a night stroll. Sitting next to a river under the moonlight we started to dance in the middle of the street as though no one was watching.

At that moment, I knew we were going to be part of each other’s lives for a really long time. It brought a smile to my face. Watching her sing and dance in those empty streets.

That moment is so special to me because as I watched Wisal dance, I looked at her and felt pure love in my heart. I never knew I loved someone this way. I remember feeling so thankful that I met this incredibly remarkable woman.

I wished for that moment to never end, for the time to stop. Freeze. So I could relive it again and again.

We would joke that we didn’t need Chanel, Dior, or Gucci to make us happy. We were just grateful to be making such incredible memories together.

There I was in the most romantic city in the world with the greatest love of my life.

Of all the roads I travelled, the roads to Paris were the most magical.

Two rollercoaster girls in Paris.

xx

Yachna