How A Cheeky Little White Lie Started Sue and Joseph's Beautiful Love Story

My sister in law took me and my niece to a soccer club in Sydney, Australia called the Apia Club on a Saturday night in September 1971. I was 16 and had organised to meet Nick (who happened to be a family friend) to meet me there but he was running late.

Whilst I was waiting, a cute guy came up and asked me for a dance to which I said yes. As we were talking we found out we had a lot in common. He told me his name was Joseph, he was Italian and a hairdresser and was 21. We were having so much fun talking non-stop and he was a great dancer. At the end of the night we made a date to meet a week later near my place. We went to Cronulla, had dinner and then walked along the beach. We had such a great night and I was smitten. He ended up telling me he was really only 17 and was sorry he lied and would like to take me out again to The Coogee Bay Hotel at Bondi the next Saturday night to watch his friends band play - of course I said yes and the rest is history.

How many years have you been married?

We have been married for 45 years and have 2 married sons, one has give us 3 beautiful grandsons and so far life has been very good with just a few ups and downs.

How me make it last…

My advice on having a happy and long marriage is to be patient, forgiving, honest, make time for one another and love with all your heart but most of all respect each other. Be a good listener and if there is something bothering either of you, pick a good time to discuss and solve it before it turns into an ugly argument.

~ Love Story written by Sue Lo Russo

Note: This love story is part of on ongoing curation in a series called Love Stories that details how couples met and their advice on how to create a long and happy marriage. Want to tell your love story and be a featured Love Story on Happy Little Vows? We'd love to hear it! Check out our HLV Instructions for more details.