WHO TO THE WHAT TO THE HOW NOW?
Picture this if you will.
A small rustic town, from days of yonder. Of cobblestones and horse carriages, and buildings with quaint latticed windows. Grey concrete clouds bring a light rain. It is early evening and most people are either dining at nearby restaurants or gone to seek shelter out of the rain, leaving the streets empty. In the near distance, a majestic castle sits, nestled amongst an outcrop of the mountain. The castle evokes thoughts of fairy tales, and of dashing knights and fair princesses.
It was standing at the edge of this town, Hohenschwangau, looking up at this castle, Neuschwanstein, that I proposed to Annie.
We were standing there next to each other admiring the view, when she asked "What are you thinking?".
And I took a while to reply to her question. Long enough for her to have probably wondered if I'd even heard her. And I had. And my mind was a torrent of thoughts at that moment. Should I? Shouldn't I? Is this the right time?
Have you ever felt like you should apologise for something, but the word 'sorry' just seems so damn hard to say out loud? It felt like that...and I had to force myself past a mental barrier to squeeze out the words from between my clenched teeth. "I...was thinking..." *long pause* "...will you marry me?"
I didn't get down on one knee, I didn't pull out a ring. I just leaned my head against hers as I spoke the words. I imagine her eyes would have widened as she heard them.
"Yes. Of course!"..."Wait, is this for real? You're not joking are you? This better not be a joke!"
I think that was *my* cue to be a little bug-eyed.
Anyway, it felt right at the time I asked, standing where we were. I was kinda terrified in those moments leading up to it, and trying to cough up the words. And despite having a fairly good idea that she would say yes, it still seemed pretty daunting and I was holding my breath until she said 'yes'. At which point there was a flood of relief and then just going back to enjoying each other's company and the view.
But there you have it. Annie and I are now engaged. It happened on the day of my birthday. Had I planned it out like this? Not quite. Though I had a pretty strong inkling that I would propose sometime during Europe, nothing was set in stone. I'd thought of the whole calling up her father and asking for permission and what not, but it kinda happened in a moment of spontanaiety.
This version is the slightly more romanticised version. When asked, I tend to just say 'We were in Hohengau. A pretty town in Germany. We could see the Neuschwanstein castle (the Disney one). And I asked her "Will you marry me?". She said yes. And that was it.
Anyway, busy times ahead for the two of us...
A small rustic town, from days of yonder. Of cobblestones and horse carriages, and buildings with quaint latticed windows. Grey concrete clouds bring a light rain. It is early evening and most people are either dining at nearby restaurants or gone to seek shelter out of the rain, leaving the streets empty. In the near distance, a majestic castle sits, nestled amongst an outcrop of the mountain. The castle evokes thoughts of fairy tales, and of dashing knights and fair princesses.
It was standing at the edge of this town, Hohenschwangau, looking up at this castle, Neuschwanstein, that I proposed to Annie.
We were standing there next to each other admiring the view, when she asked "What are you thinking?".
And I took a while to reply to her question. Long enough for her to have probably wondered if I'd even heard her. And I had. And my mind was a torrent of thoughts at that moment. Should I? Shouldn't I? Is this the right time?
Have you ever felt like you should apologise for something, but the word 'sorry' just seems so damn hard to say out loud? It felt like that...and I had to force myself past a mental barrier to squeeze out the words from between my clenched teeth. "I...was thinking..." *long pause* "...will you marry me?"
I didn't get down on one knee, I didn't pull out a ring. I just leaned my head against hers as I spoke the words. I imagine her eyes would have widened as she heard them.
"Yes. Of course!"..."Wait, is this for real? You're not joking are you? This better not be a joke!"
I think that was *my* cue to be a little bug-eyed.
Anyway, it felt right at the time I asked, standing where we were. I was kinda terrified in those moments leading up to it, and trying to cough up the words. And despite having a fairly good idea that she would say yes, it still seemed pretty daunting and I was holding my breath until she said 'yes'. At which point there was a flood of relief and then just going back to enjoying each other's company and the view.
But there you have it. Annie and I are now engaged. It happened on the day of my birthday. Had I planned it out like this? Not quite. Though I had a pretty strong inkling that I would propose sometime during Europe, nothing was set in stone. I'd thought of the whole calling up her father and asking for permission and what not, but it kinda happened in a moment of spontanaiety.
This version is the slightly more romanticised version. When asked, I tend to just say 'We were in Hohengau. A pretty town in Germany. We could see the Neuschwanstein castle (the Disney one). And I asked her "Will you marry me?". She said yes. And that was it.
Anyway, busy times ahead for the two of us...