Two women, one century: Twins celebrate 100th birthday in France
They were 20 years old when World War Two broke out.
FAY-DE-BRETAGNE (Reuters) - Drop the alcohol, take your daily dose of bicarbonate of soda and spend some quality family time - that’s the secret to a long and happy life, said 100-year-old French twins Marie Lemarie and Genevieve Bouligand.
Lemarie and Bouligand, born in 1919 in the western small French town of Fay-de-Bretagne, marked one century of life as twins on Thursday (October 17).
The two were welcomed with warm applause as they walked into a hallway of the Saint-Joseph nursing home, where family, friends and local admirers gathered in celebration.
Lemarie and Bouligand said they were inseparable in their younger years, living in a family farm their parents bought in 1936 when they were 17 years old.
They were 20 years old when World War Two broke out.
After the end of the war, Bouligand got married in 1947, followed two years later by Lemarie and began their married lives in Fay-de-Bretagne.
"We got to see each other very often, but each one of us had started a family," Bouligand said.
Through the years, the twins’ family grew. Bouligand had four children, 11 grandchildren and 16 great grandchildren, while Lemarie had two children, one grandchild and three great-grandchildren."
After giving way to a new generation, Bouligand and Lemarie were reunited in the nursing home in November 2016. They said they were very happy to be living under the same roof again.
They said their secret to a long life was no alcohol and a daily dose of bicarbonate of soda in water.
"After milk, it was water," Bouligand said.
But the most important thing for Lemarie and Bouligand are their families.
"My secret? It’s being happy with my family," Bouligand said. "That’s my only reason for living."
The centenarians will take part in a festival of twins in Fay-de-Bretagne where they will be joined by dozens of others on Oct. 26.
