In sickness and in health

Moses and Beverley Varathaiah were married on July 15, 1985. This is their story: “Those marriage vows repeated after Pastor Joey Govender at Bethesda Temple more than 30 years ago echo loudly in my head, ‘For better, for worse, for richer, for poorer, in sickness and in health’.

How those words became so real in our lives is unbelievable.

I married Moses 32 years ago. We are both teachers, so the vow of richer or poorer was a challenge for us. Living on a meagre teacher’s salary and committing ourselves to healthy financial well-being was an uphill battle.

My sister and her husband died, leaving her two children in the care of my mom and dad. It became our responsibility to help care for them. By this time, we had two beautiful children of our own, Caleb and Candice.

We had to make the decision to share whatever we had with not two but four children. My children had to make the sacrifice. We opted to send our children to former Model C schools, so paying for their education was a priority but difficult. Throughout all this, Moses supported me through thick and thin.

He is a man of honest means, a man of integrity and a man who, if needs be, will climb the highest mountain and swim the deepest sea.

We educated our children as they graduated. We too, worked tirelessly to obtain our Masters degrees.

My mom died and life took on a whole new strenuous dimension. I now had the responsibility of taking care of my dad, my two nieces and my household.

Juggling this lifestyle would not have been possible without the 100% support from Moses, my dear, loving husband. My dad died. Life was churning out some greater upheavals in my life.

More challenges presented themselves. On January 15, 2015, I was diagnosed with colon cancer. Those vows of in sickness and in health were now going to be tested.

‘Don’t worry, we are here for you. You are going to get through this. God is your healer.’ Those were the words spoken to me by my loving husband Moses. He never left my side throughout my cancer journey.

My wonderful children, my immediate neighbours and a few family members and Moses became my guardian angels. In May 2015, I had major surgery to remove my colon. Living with a colostomy bag was not easy. Moses and my children gave me around-the-clock attention.

This is the man you will want to marry. Someone who will sacrifice his own sleep, rest and happiness to place yours first. I would not have survived without the help of God and my family. In May 2015, I underwent a second surgery.

Oral chemotherapy thereafter nearly killed me,but I’m still alive to write this story. My six-month chemotherapy journey required patience, love and support. This is exactly what I received from Moses and my children.

On January 6, 2016, Moses’ birthday, I completed my chemotherapy. We have been through many storms, valleys and dark places, but we are stronger because of it.

Those vows are not words, they have been proven in my marriage of 32 years to Moses.

A successful marriage is based on love, support, open communication, honesty, integrity and Godliness.” – Beverley Varathaiah