*___*
Backstory time!
When - a while back - conversation amongst the boyfriend and me turned to the topic of marriage and such, he said something along the lines of, "I would've proposed to you a while ago already, but I haven't thought of a special enough place, though I kind of like the idea of Waikiki beach?"
And I said something along the lines of, "If I take a look at our finances we can reasonably make it there in, oh, five years, and that's an awfully long time at my tender age; besides, isn't Waikiki beach a bit kitschy? I mean, nothing against romantic things, I love me some romance as much as the next girl, but kitsch I don't love. Besides, I'd much prefer something that is special but not so special you can't return there occasionally - as in whenever you feel you need it - which might be just the tiniest bit difficult with Hawaii."
And that was that.
But of course you - well-versed in the way narratives work - know I wouldn't be telling you this if recent events didn't justify it, so here's the story.
As every year, Jörg takes the kidlets from his Jûdô club to the Wewelsburg for summer camp. The Wewelsburg is a triangular castle near Paderborn, and it is also a Youth Hostel*. Since I have to be careful about my vacation days at work - in fact, at the moment I only have 1 left, because the system hasn't yet realised that the year has gone into its second half - I couldn't come along, but I went to drop by for the traditional last day's barbecue and games. This year's topic (the Jûdô is just the place to recruit the participants really) was Ancient Rome, so I imagined 25 kids dressed up in red tunics and loricae segmentatae (which the boyfriend and some of the older Jûdôka assembled, because the children proved too clumsy even to paint their shields on their own) would be quite a sight. ( 'tis.)
So I drove there after work, enjoyed the barbecue, went along on the nightly (well, eveningly) wide game, saw that the kids really were that clumsy, and then walked back to the firesite, alone with Jörg for a moment.
"I'll have to drive back home soon," said I.
"There's something I have to do first," said he, and went down on one knee.
*flail*
I probably should've savoured the moment a bit longer, but as most of these life-changing things go, when they're actually there you can't elongate them but have to plunge forward. So all I could do was say "Yes of course I will" and kiss him, and spend the rest of the evening squeeing softly every now and then when I couldn't contain it anymore.
I did have to drive home shortly after that, where I was welcomed by two kittens angry at having been abandoned for a full day ('náro has killed a blindworm to show his displeasure), but, oh my God.
Someone's heart overflowing with joy is a rather kitschy phrase, I know, but that's how I feel just now.
And a proposal on a meadow by a river, underneath a medieval castle, night falling and the moon rising, in red tunic and shining Roman armour? Waikiki beach just can't compete.
And it's just one and a half hour from home.
*relapses into squeeing, then has to rush off to university*
- - -
*Due to its exceptional shape and prominent location it also was an educational institution for the SS during the Third Reich. >_>
= = =
Muss schnell zur Uni, also kommt die Übersetzung erst später. Oder auch nicht, bis dahin habt ihr's sicher eh schon auf englisch gelesen.
Aber auch hier noch mal: *QUIEK!* ^_____^