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Still young after 65 years of marriage

Three hearts hang from the door at Germaine and Edouard Amyotte’s room at Sunnyside Manor, and when the door swings open, the pair can be found, sitting companionably and watching television.
Edouard and Germaine Amyotte have been married for 65 years.
Edouard and Germaine Amyotte have been married for 65 years.

Three hearts hang from the door at Germaine and Edouard Amyotte’s room at Sunnyside Manor, and when the door swings open, the pair can be found, sitting companionably and watching television.

After decades of marriage, the pair still spend much of their time together, whether it’s watching a show or going floor curling, as at 82 and 87, they still feel young, says Germaine.

“It seems like it wasn’t that long,” she says of celebrating their 65th anniversary recently “How can we be this old to celebrate 65 years of marriage?”

Looking back on all that time though, they agree – getting married all those years ago was the best decision they could have made.

Germaine Amyotte had been born and raised in Therien, but not caring for the farming life, her father and mother moved to British Columbia. However, when her sister came back for a visit, that would be the seed to plant for her to come back to the area as well.

“My sister married his brother,” explained Germaine, adding that when she visited her sister and met her sister’s brother-in-law, she didn’t want to go back or return to school. Her mother advised her to find a job, which she did, working at housecleaning and at local restaurants.

While she went out with Phil Amyotte a couple of times, she said she had her eye on Edouard.

“He was better looking,” she laughs. “I fell in love with him right away. He was so good looking.”

Edouard is a bit more reticent about his feelings for Germaine, saying in those days, he was working on the farm and not thinking much about girls. And while he had a lot of girls to choose from, ultimately, it was Germaine he asked to accompany her to his brother’s home for Christmas, admitting he thought she was “lovely.”

“There were a lot of girls that wanted to go out with him,” Germaine agreed. “They were very envious of me – they still are!”

The pair got married when Germaine was 16 and Edouard was 22, and lived and worked on the family farm, but Germaine noted it was an adjustment at first, as she was used to having more creature comforts.

“I found it pretty hard; we had no running water, no power, nothing. We had to run for water, run for wood. But we were young,” she said, adding, however, that she loved it. “We were happy with what we had. In those days, it wasn’t money, money, money. As long as you had what you needed, you could go, go, go.”

The pair eventually purchased the post office in Mallaig, which they ran out of their house for 30 years. Edouard did other jobs along the way too, while Germaine stayed at home with their nine children, and while life was busy, Edouard said, “We were always happy with each other – that made life shorter.”

There were some difficult times too, particularly when it came to their health, with Germaine estimating she has had to undergo 18 surgeries in her lifetime – one, six years ago, with a close shave where the doctors did not think she would survive – to Edouard having open heart surgery a few years ago as well.

“It’s scary – we know one of these days it’s going to be it, but we hope not now,” said Germaine.

Both said they felt fortunate to have seen grandchildren, great-grandchildren and even great-great-grandchildren born, with many of those family members reuniting when the pair celebrated their 65th anniversary in November. Fr. Gerard Gauthier had the couple renew their vows, and as a special surprise, brought up all their children to make a ring around them.

Surrounded by all their children, the generations, and the love that surrounded them, the tough times all faded away, the pair said.

“It was so special, so touching,” said Germaine, noting 65 years of marriage went by in the blink of an eye, leaving with it wonderful memories.

“You don’t look at the hardships – you just think of the good stuff.”

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