What Parashqevi Simaku once said about her ex-husband, Robert, whose last name she still bears
2024-12-14 16:51:18
TiranaPost
In the story of Parashqevi Simaku's last days, her American ex-husband, who at that time tried to be her manager, also appeared on the scene.
What did Parashqevia herself say in an interview with Rudina Xhunga, in Rogner, in 1997, about Robert, whose last name she still keeps, even after the divorce?
Excerpt from the interview
Tell us a date that stands out from the others?
Parashqevi Simaku: Valentine's Day. On February 14, '96, Robert, my husband, proposed to me. That February evening, he invited me to the Jones restaurant in Beverly Hills, where he gave me his family's ring. Later, I learned that Marilyn Monroe had also gotten married at that same restaurant.
How did you meet?
Parashqevi Simaku: I didn't have any romantic love, because the only love that was born in me, developed in me, and I believe will never die, is music, but I have never forgotten that family occupies an important place in my life.
Our acquaintance came about through our work together. He was an instrumentalist, he played guitar and sang in the band, where I sang accompanied by 6 musicians. While we were putting the finishing touches on my album, he asked me one day if we could go out together.
Was your answer an immediate yes?
Parashqevi Simaku: An Albanian does not say yes immediately, even in America. I remember telling him: "Work with me, or fall in love with me", and he replied that he would not like to separate them. He is very charming and, leaving the rejections aside, I explained to him that he had to respect the tradition of my country first, that is, ask for the girl's hand in marriage from my parents, through a letter.
He didn't like this at first, but as he wrote a long, long letter, he began to find it almost amusing that he was writing to two strangers, to whom he felt a spiritual obligation. My parents replied after two weeks, and after I was introduced to his family, a new life began for both of them, a life together that seems to last forever. Over time, I realized that it's worth sharing your life with a wonderful person like Robert.
Robert is wonderful, why is he handsome, or does he have other qualities and characteristics invisible to the eye of the stranger?
Parashqevi Simaku: It's difficult to talk about your husband, but what seems most important to me is his sensitivity, the human warmth with which he surrounds you, the love he gives you.
Have you ever called a man like him in your dreams?
Parashqevi Simaku: I had written a list once, with 10 qualities that a future husband should have. Robert has 13.
So in '92 when you left Albania, you were almost convinced that no one here could be worthy of your list of 10 demands?
Parashqevi Simaku: I left Albania heartbroken from the connection with a man who seemed to be walking a completely opposite path from mine. When I realized that no matter how hard I tried, our paths would never have a common point, I sacrificed my pain, to leave for the unknown, but not with completely unclear ideas, because what has always guided me has been the ambition to walk the path of art.
Is Robert Albanian-American?
Parashchevi Simaku:
100 generations of American.
