Keeping a happy and lasting marriage is something that every couple wishes for. Unfortunately, not everyone is lucky in love. There are many reasons why couples separate. But for one Jewish couple, they only have one reason to stay together- Love!
When couples get married, they often swear to be together “til death do us part.” But not everyone gets to fulfill this promise. However, Zechariah and Shama’a proved that it can be done. The lovely couple has been together for 91 years!
Zechariah and Shama’a are both orphans from Yemen. Due to traditions, they were married very early in their life. Zechariah was just 12 years old while Shama’a was 10 years old when they tied the knot.
While they seem like kids when they got married, it didn’t stop them from working on their marriage. They went through extreme poverty with no house and had to clean donkeys’ barns to earn money. In 1948, they moved to Israel to build their family. They were blessed with 11 children.
“One. Two. Three… I can’t even remember how many were there,” Zechariah joked about their kids.
Through the years, the young couple worked on their marriage until they were old and gray. They even have 64 grandchildren to complete their family.
According to Zechariah, one of the secrets of their lasting marriage is devotion and loyalty. He considers Shama’a as God’s gift to him.
He shared in a report on BBC, “Remember, this is my first and last woman. God sent her to me. I was lucky to win her. Women flocked to me like a herd of sheep, but I didn’t take any of them.”
He added that their long marriage was also a blessing from God.
“God protected us all the way,” he said in a report from Aleteia.org.
Being married for 91 years is such a big accomplishment. Truly, an inspiring story about marriage and love!
