A long and adventurous marriage, to be sure:
For four years from 1941 Hsiao Li and her husband performed dangerous work behind enemy lines smuggling radio parts, teaching English and supporting the communist resistance in Yenan in north-west China, for which they won the personal thanks of Mao Tse-tung and other communist commanders.
After the war – but not before attending a farewell dinner thrown by Chairman Mao and his wife – the couple left for Britain, where Michael's father was the newly ennobled Master of Balliol College, Oxford. The peerage passed to Michael in 1952, making Hsiao Li – the new Lady Lindsay – the first Chinese peeress in history, an event remarked upon by The New York Times.
They eventually soured on the revolution, it seems, and managed to see it reformed to some degree. Interesting read (and her book would probably be a page-turner).
A little different (ok, a lot different) was the life of Lady Jacobovits:
Amelie Jakobovits played a critical part in the professional as well as in the private life of her husband, Lord Jakobovits, the Chief Rabbi of the United Kingdom from 1967 to 1991, and the first holder of that post to sit in the Upper House. She was the perfect foil for Jakobovits, by nature a scholarly, even shy man, who had written the pre-eminent volume on Jewish medical ethics.
By contrast, "Lady J", as she was universally known, was both outgoing and outspoken. She assumed many of the burdens of his communal work, and never hesitated to push the cause of her husband – both during his lifetime and following his death in 1999.
At the time of their marriage Immanuel was appointed Chief Rabbi of Ireland. Amelie arrived in Dublin speaking little English, but was soon at the centre of things in the 5,300-strong Jewish community in the Irish Republic. Her life became an unceasing cycle of practising the Mitzvahs (commandments, or good deeds) – principally Haknassat Orhim (welcoming guests) and Bikkur Cholim (visiting the sick) – which she maintained to the end of her days. Meanwhile, she and her husband had two sons and four daughters.
I find inspiration in such lives -- whether Catholic or not. Seeing how women survive, even thrive amidst so many obstacles makes me wonder what on earth I have to grumble about in my cozy suburban life surrounded by prepared food, ready-to-wear clothes and running water. Rest in peace, ladies. May your good deeds redound to your credit.
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