The Jamaica Star :: Life& Times :: An emerald Green marriage

Kimoni Harris, Staff Reporter

Charles and Clarissa Green who has been married for 54 years. - ian allen

Fifty-four years of marriage for Charles and Clarissa Green has proven that love and understanding is the key in any marriage even when distance becomes a factor.

Charles and Clarissa Green got married February 20, 1954. That year would have been special for the couple as marriage they say was inevitable. When the STAR spoke with the exhuberant and beaming couple, Charles Green first comment was, "when you told me about 25 years, I was like what? That could not be us, we are married 54 years, six months and counting."

Clarissa's memories

Without wasting any time, Clarissa made it her duty to state how they met. "I remember everything, him don't remember anything at all, mek me tell you. First of all my father was a policeman and he was very strict. At the time, we go to the same church and one day he said I want to speak to you. I said what you want to speak to me for? He said "have you got a boyfriend?" I said "No", he said "OK, OK I will see you then," she said

She added; "That was the Sunday. The Tuesday I received a letter from him asking me to be his friend. But because my papa was so strict I said to him you have to see my dad and he went to papa and since then the relationship started to build."

Charles finally got the chance to speak and continued by saying, "I realised that she liked me and she was not resisting my advances, she definitely wanted to be with me."

Charles added that he had made up his mind from the first time he saw Clarissa that he had to have her.

Most interesting girl

"Bwoy, I said in my heart, if I can't get this girl, I'm never gonna stop until I get her. For me, she was the most interesting girl in the district at the time, she was well-kept and my mother told me If I decided to take her as my wife she would be the best choice," he said.

The relationship got steamier as the months went by as Charles regularly spent the night with Clarissa.

"She would open the door and I would spend the evening with her, at that time her parents didn't know anything," he said. Charles said her father got suspicious when he dropped a banana leaf on her door step. Charles said he was using the leaf as shelter and her father saw it the next morning. "I think he was pleased to know that it was me. He didn't complain," he said.

Most of the Green's married life was spent in the United Kingdom and for 10 years they lived apart before Mr. Green sent for his wife and children.

"Our marriage has been working because she understands me very much. I love her a lot because we have five beautiful children and they turned out to be very successful. If she should die now, I would never marry again because God sent the perfect girl for me to marry" said Mr. Green. Playfully he added, "It's not everything you can tell her because her head easy to swell. Daily, I cook breakfast and she cook the dinner, everyday I realise, everything I do, I do it for both of us.We are Christians and that it was carry on our marriage, I was lucky she was directed to me by God."

Mrs Green confirmed, "I have no regrets. I've never said sorry I marry him. We do not fight, we have ups and down at times but God joined us together and no distance could keep us apart."