South couple toasts 60 years of wedded bliss

MANY people believe arranged marriages can be a recipe for failure. And this usually is the case, especially with love and compatibility being major issues. However, this was not the case with Moon and Doolin Ramsahai of Bonne Aventure in South Trinidad. Their union was arranged by their parents back in 1945 and 60 years after their vows, the love and respect they have for each other has not diminished. On Saturday, the couple celebrated , their 60th wedding anniversary at the Gasparillo Community Centrein grand style.

Doolin, 74, cried tears of joy during the celebrations and described her 60 years of marriage as a blessing. She said it took much patience and caring. “Love was the most important factor in 60 years of marriage, followed by patience, caring, commitment, trust in each other and in God.  Placing God first in my marriage has proved that He is really the head of the home.” Doolin, whose maiden name was Ragbir, was born on April 21, 1931, to Ragbir and Pauline Bansraj at 8 Caratal Road, Bonne Aventure. She is her parents’ only child.

Her husband, Moon, 79, was born on October 15, 1925, to Ramsahai and Soomaria Jagdeo of Cedar Hill Road, Sum Sum Hill, Claxton Bay. His parents’ second child, he had one brother (now deceased) and three sisters: Dolly, Molly and Polly. Moon and Doolin were married on April 29, 1945, he at the age of 19 and Doolin at the tender age of 14. Doolin told Newsday some of her husband’s relatives were living next door to her home at Bonne Aventure, and thought she would have made a good wife for their nephew, Moon.

“One of Moon’s relatives lived next to me and told Moon’s parents about me. Moon came and see me and left. I thought on that visit that he was nice and I did actually fall in love with him then and there,” Doolin recalled with a big broad smile. “After I saw him that day I never did see him again, ’till one year after and that was for the wedding,” she added. Doolin said that it was the best thing that could have happened in her life at that time.

The couple have 11 children — Renee, Jairaj, Geeta, Vishnu, Seeta, Steve, Leela, Ramesh, Rhonda Lee, Dave and Peter. They have also been blessed with 29 grandchildren and one great grandchild to date. “It was not easy, my family went through a hard time, but I stuck with it. I got accustomed to the hard, bad and good times and I held onto it in order for my family and I to survive,” she added.