“The first night after I met her I saw her in my dreams”

Lee and Tiko are English teachers in Tbilisi. They are a couple made up of two different nationalities, and they are sure that their marriage, blessed by God, is perfect. Tiko is Georgian, but Lee Allen is from Mobile, Alabama, in the USA. The city Mobile is close to the Gulf of Mexico. They met each other in Gori, when in 2005, Lee came to Georgia as a US Peace Corps volunteer. He started learning about Georgian traditions, language, and culture for his job and later developed a personal interest.

 While working as a teacher at a Gori secondary school, he fell in love with Tiko, who was providing translation for him when needed. As a Peace Corps volunteer, Lee stayed with a host family. One day, he was ill with the flu and he heard someone knocking on his door. At first, he thought that the last thing he wanted to do was meet someone; he felt sick and wanted to be alone. Lee looked out the window and there stood Tiko. Thinking she was too cute to ignore, Lee quickly forgot about his flu, put on some nice clothes, and opened the door.

Tiko: Because I had never spoken to a native English speaker before I was nervous. And my first words were, “Hello, my name is Tiko… can you understand me?” And, he responded, “Sure!”

Lee: That night, after I met Tiko, I saw her in my dreams. I was wondering what she was doing in my dreams. I cannot really say that I fell in love at first sight, but maybe at second sight, because at first it was more like friendship. Neither of us thought about marrying, we just understood each other. Maybe in the past I thought about marrying a foreigner, and all the time I was looking for someone special. It took me 34 years to find a wife; I found her when I stopped thinking about it and when I traveled around the world.

Tiko: I never thought to be the wife of a foreigner but love came and I am extremely happy to be next to him. My pain is his pain, my happiness is his too. We are like one. You know, sometimes he calls me a “refugee” when I go to lie on his side of the bed and not mine; because I get so cold but together we are warm.

Lee: We had the same tradition in Gori. Now, when she goes to see her family over the weekend in Gori and we are apart, we cannot sleep at night.

 Tiko: In Gori I taught him Georgian and he instructed me in painting; he even opened an art-club there. Once after classes, he sent me a message that said, “Tiko, something happened today!” I was shocked, I thought I had done something wrong-- like explained Georgian grammar incorrectly to him.

 Lee: I was afraid to tell her because I was trying not to fall in love- as I am a foreigner and I was to be here for two years and was planning to leave afterwards. Therefore, it would be difficult for both of us. I resisted the possibility. However, anyway, I sent her another message saying, “Tiko, I fell in love with you.”

Tiko: When I read it, I blushed. I can say that I already had the same feelings towards him. Lee’s mother arrived a year before our wedding. We got married in Sameba Church on November 4. After the wedding, I became Tinatin K. Allen.

Lee: Being baptized as an orthodox in Gori at St.Mary’s church was my first real chance to show her how serious my feelings were and that I was ready to marry her. I knew it was important for her. My godfather is the priest of that church now. In addition, my orthodox name is Luka. During the wedding ceremony, I looked up at the wall in the church, where a fresco painter had painted and I thought to myself, I am a painter and he is too. This was a kind of sign for me that Luka was appropriate for my orthodox name. You see, Luka is the patron saint of artists among other things.

Tiko: After the day of our marriage, Lee’s father wanted to see me, but he could not come to Georgia as his mother did, because he is somewhat ill. Therefore, we decided to go there- but we have encountered a problem with the visa--which is still late. We applied for this immigrant visa in February but the answer has not come. We gathered all the needed documents and sent them as they requested. We want to be there for Christmas for several weeks, but we are still waiting for the answer.

 Lee: When we have child it is automatically an American citizen, but not my wife… and we are having problems with that. I want my family to meet Tiko as well.

Tiko: We want our child to be both Georgian and American; he or she should know both languages and traditions.

Lee: We want the child to be born in Georgia because medical services are good here and family support is very strong. Tiko’s family will help us with the baby. In Georgia, family members are much closer to each other. It is a bit different from American life as are some other traditions. For example, I am the primary cook of the family.

 Tiko: Lee is a very good cook, I cook only Georgian food, but he knows how to prepare Chinese, Japanese, French, Spanish, Mexican, Indian, and American food. Today, when I came home he had already boiled water for my tea and prepared delicious food for me. We serve and help each other this way in all kinds of situations.

 Lee: I do not know what to call it; it is something more than luck; we were fortunate to meet each other. Our marriage is the culmination of years of hope and wishing for happiness. We have found it together.