GERRINGONG twins Gwen Wilson and Jeane Evans don’t place too much stock in many of the common theories about such relationships - premonitions about bad things happening to the other or telepathy, for instance.
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Mrs Wilson (née Smith) and her identical twin sister, Mrs Evans will turn 95 on June 7.
‘‘I think it’s ridiculous,’’ Mrs Wilson said of such suggestions.
‘‘Well, I can’t say it’s ridiculous, but I’ve had never had any mental telepathy or things like that, but we do go out and buy the same things sometimes.
‘‘We’ve often bought the same things independently, things like clothing or material.’’
Mrs Evans was born first; two hours and ten minutes prior to her sibling.
‘‘There weren’t many twins around when we were born,’’ Mrs Wilson said.
‘‘Our mother didn’t know she was having twins, in those days even the doctor didn’t know.’’
They each had two children.
Mrs Wilson has five grandchildren and seven great-grandchildren; her twin has three grandchildren and two great-grandchildren.
While based in Sydney, the two families built a holiday home between them in Gerringong in 1957.
Mrs Wilson and her late husband David settled in her current home in 1976, selling their half of the holiday home back to Mrs Evans and her late husband Doug, who settled there full-time in 1980.
‘‘We had a lifestyle established here, so we didn’t have to make new friends or anything,’’ Mrs Wilson said.
Their respective husbands were long-time friends, and the twins admit having each other nearby throughout their lives was ‘‘handy’’.
They currently live just a couple of hundred metres from one another.
‘‘It’s just your life, and you just take it for granted,’’ Mrs Wilson laughed of their relationship.
‘‘You don’t think about it too much,’’ her sister said.
‘‘When we were kids, you’d say, ‘we did this’, never, ‘I went anywhere’,’’ Mrs Wilson said.
‘‘It was, ‘we did this’... You just grow up, it’s just second nature to you, and you don’t even think about it.’’
They’re foundation members of the Gerringong Bowling Club and its women’s bowling club, and both have retained their unrestricted drivers’ license, which they agree is vital to their ongoing independence.
They formerly enjoyed surfing, and still attempt to remain active.
Mrs Evans enjoys craft activities, while her sister continues to play bowls.
The pair will have a family lunch in Sydney to celebrate their latest milestone.
‘‘You have to make the most of every day, and be grateful that you’re here,’’ Mrs Wilson said.
‘‘I’m glad to be here.
‘‘It’s just another birthday,’’ her sister said.
