Louise grows up in post-war France, while Johann is raised in West Germany. They meet at the University of Lyon, where Johann is an exchange student. They fall in love, get married, move to a German village, watch their children grow up, and see their parents pass away. For Louise, life in her new home is not easy; her husband is a different person there than the one she fell in love with. At some point, she learns that her father-in-law fought in the war against the French. Throughout their entire lives, Louise and Johann search for the right words to express a time that no one ever wanted to talk about.