In this age of cynicism and broken romances, there is something so mystical about couples who’ve lasted through the decades. Enter Bucky Bachner and Selma Nadel, a couple featured by the New York Times this week who had the dedication and love to journey through 65 happy years together — and it all started with pickles. Luckily for us, the Times even shared a sweet video of the couple sharing their journey. Their story is an inspiration to even the most closed-hearted among us: Bucky Bachner and Selma Nadel met in the Bronx back in 1939 and began a secret neighborhood romance in their early teen years, with Selma hopping onto Bucky’s bike as they sped out of the view of her disapproving father.
They began a summer ritual: Bucky would duck into a local Jewish deli to buy them both penny pickles while Selma waited outside with the bike, then they’d meander to a local playground. When Bucky turned 18 and joined the Marines in 1942, the pair kept in touch through his deployment to the Pacific, still hiding their courtship from her father through secret letters. Bucky told the Times, “I figured that was my girl, and if everything eventually falls into place, I’ll marry her.”
They spent a few years separated, but nothing could keep them apart for long. They married in 1948, and now, several children and grandchildren later, the couple lives at a nursing home together. “We’re not only good friends; we’re lovers,” Arthur told the Times. “We confide in each other. Arguments are at a minimum.”
“We just move to the next day,” Selma said. Sounds like solid relationship advice to me!