Born in Yemen, Zacharie and Shama'a have been married for 91 years. They have 64 grandchildren and love each other like the first day. Their union broke records for longevity, it must be said that they were married at a young age and it was together that they overcame the difficulties of life for more than 90 years.
In 1948, the couple had to move from Yemen, fleeing persecution from anti-Semitism. They were among the first Jews to settle in the then newly founded State of Israel, and they still live there to this day.
Since they are both of the Jewish faith, they had to marry early as was the custom at the time. By the early 1900s, their marriage had been arranged according to tradition. The goal was to prevent them from marrying outside their community.
Both orphans, they have known suffering, Sorrow and pain. They never left each other again
Zacharie was then only 12 years old, while Shama'a was 10 years old. She remembers. “We both grew up as orphans. He was motherless, and so am I. We have suffered. There is no worse suffering than the one we have experienced. There is none,” she said. A testimony of the one who gave birth to 11 children.
The couple went through lean years, and all those years of misery and poverty brought them closer than ever. There was a time in their lives when they didn't even have a roof over their heads, when they were still newlyweds. The couple were forced to clean out a barn and live there temporarily.
The secret of this couple lies above all in the complicity and empathy that have bound them since they were husband and wife. They have weathered storms and have both stood together, united and hand in hand to meet all the challenges that life has imposed on them.
However, they also experienced great moments of happiness and joy. At the head of a large family, they spend happy days in the serenity of their old age, surrounded by their many children and grandchildren.
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