They have been husband and wife for 91 years and they still love each other: "Our secret is humor"
In today's times, making a relationship last is increasingly rare: relationships tend to be wrecked prematurely, running aground in the face of the first difficulties. This is an important turnaround compared to the past, in which divorce was hardly ever contemplated and people were encouraged to "endure" rather than give up. Today, freedom of choice is subject to less social conditioning, but long-lived love stories - truly happy ones - remain rare and are envied. To stay together for a long time, it is undoubtedly necessary to compromise and have great patience in order to accept and understand the differences between each other. But while many older people today do so by virtue of a cultural belief, others continue to choose their life partner by listening just to their hearts.
This is the case of a Jewish couple married for 91 years and who still declare themselves deeply in love!
via BBC News
That's right: the marriage of Zechariah and Shama - originally from Yemen - has lasted for nine decades and does not seem to be any the worse for wear. Far from it: the two claim that their love is still very strong.
In all these years, the two have faced and overcome numerous difficulties, such as poverty and persecution. They were among the first Jews to move back to Israel in 1948 (when the Jewish state was founded).
How did they meet? Zacharias and Shama were both orphans. As was the custom in the first half of the last century, children without parents got married at an early age, so as to create a family unit based on the same religious beliefs and cultural norms. For this reason, the subjects of this story got married when Zacharias was 12, and Shama was 10.
"We both grew up as orphans. He was motherless, so was I. We have suffered. There is no suffering worse than what we have experienced. There is none," the woman said.
The two did not own a house, but slept in a donkey's stable which they cleaned diligently. When they managed to move to Israel, they started their own large family, consisting of eleven children who have given them 64 grandchildren.
The secret of their timeless love is humor: Zacharias and Shama continually tease each other affectionately.
"God sent her to me. I was lucky to win her over," declared the man, adding that quarrels between them are practically non-existent and that being together makes both of them deeply happy.
The two, despite the 91 years spent together, do not win the world record as the longest-lived couple in the world. This record belongs to Julio Cesar Mora Tapia and Waldramina Maclovia Quinteros Reyes, respectively 110 and 104 years old.
