Dayaram and Roshini Ghooruhoo recently celebrated 57 years of marriage by sharing their wisdom with a young couple, showcasing the power of faith and communication in lasting relationships.
Dayaram, 84, and Roshini, 77, of Hillary, celebrated their wedding anniversary on February 24.
The pair share a love for God, which was how they met 57 years ago at the Sea Cow Lake Baptist Church, where Roshini’s uncle was the pastor.
Dayaram was visiting from Assemblies of God Church in Durban CBD at the time.
He later approached Roshini’s family to ask for her hand in marriage and her family agreed as he was a man of God.
The couple married in 1968 at the Unit 1 Baptist Church.
Roshini was 19 and Dayaram was 26.
“Even though our wedding was small and intimate, we were happy to be the first couple to be married at the newly-established church. In those days, weddings were not exciting or special. We said our vows with our families present and then went on with our marriage,” said Roshini.
They lived in Unit 9 in Chatsworth where they started a family. They then moved to Hillary to be close to their children.
Dayaram owned a clothing company, while Roshini worked and continues to work as a pastor at Bayview Christian Fellowship.
“We have been through a lot together but our marriage has taught us to live for Jesus and to always apologise when we are wrong. We never wanted to argue in front of the children. We respected each other and that was what we taught our children.
"There is no use going through life angry or upset by the small things. We were open to have God present in our marriage and within our family,” said Roshini.
The couple enjoy travelling and eating out together.
“We enjoy each other's company, which is why we love travelling together, and doing things together."
Dayaram said marriage these days was different from when they got married.
“The new generation marriages don’t last because the couples don’t respect each other. They don't accept each other's faults and run away before they can solve the problems.
“When something doesn’t go as planned, they pack their bags and divorce. Marriages end too quickly these days. Couples refuse to communicate their problems.
"In our marriage, my wife and I always worked as a team. We put God and our family first. That's why we’ve always been happy together,” said Dayaram.
The couple said they were meant to go out for their anniversary but duty at the church called.
“My wife loves going to Spur but on the day of our anniversary, we instead decided to help counsel a couple, who were going through a tough time in their marriage. We wanted to help. It made our anniversary more special because we could instill our values of marriage into theirs."
Dayaram and Roshini have three children - a daughter, Shandra, two sons, Shan and Sudesh - and one granddaughter, Sanshia.