In the early 1990s, 19-year-old Holly Deiaco-Smith boarded a plane at JFK to spend a year studying in Nancy, in northeastern France. At first she felt excited, but within weeks that excitement gave way to isolation and loneliness. Daily life was harder than she expected, and speaking French was especially difficult.
“I could understand the language somewhat, but I was terrible about speaking it. My accent was terrible. People could not understand me,” Deiaco-Smith recalled. Repeatedly struggling to be understood left her emotionally drained, and she worried about the rest of the year. The one bright spot was a care package her mother had sent — including Skippy peanut butter, which she couldn’t find in France. She pictured digging her spoon into the jar and savoring a small taste of home.
She went to the post office to pick up the package, but the clerk didn’t speak English and had trouble understanding her French-accented requests. Growing more frustrated and on the verge of tears, Deiaco-Smith felt hopeless — until a woman named Chantal Jouve entered the scene.
“She stepped in and she looked at me and said, in English, ‘Can I help you?'” Deiaco-Smith said. Jouve spoke to the attendant, and within minutes the package was handed over.
Afterward, Jouve invited her to dinner the next Sunday. That invitation turned into a regular tradition: every Sunday Holly joined Jouve and her family. It became a safe place to practice French without the sadness and frustration she had felt before, and it felt like a home away from home.
Decades later, the two remain in touch. They exchange Christmas cards and have visited each other’s families. Deiaco-Smith says Jouve’s small act of kindness had a lasting impact: it taught her to notice when strangers might need help and to offer kindness in return. She remains “forever grateful that Madame Jouve did that” for her.
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