Getting hitched

On Sunday, September 3, 2006, my life changed forever.

It started out like many Sunday mornings -- Jonathan and I went to church, and afterward stopped at our respective houses to throw a few things in a bag and head to the coast for a day or two. Since his parents live in Pacific City, we have spent a few weekends there over the past few months, and wanted to squeeze in at least one more visit while the weather is still nice.

Jonathan told me that his mom was making a light dinner at 4 pm, and she had asked if we would stop by their family property in Neskowin on the way to pick some blackberries for a pie. So we arrived on the property mid-afternoon, blackberry bowl in hand, and tromped through the waist-high grass in the field, making our way down toward the creek. At the edge of the field, I noticed a small bundle of orange calla lilies, tied to a tree branch with a piece of ribbon.

"Wow, honey...that's pretty. What's that from?" I asked.
"I dunno," he shrugged. And for some reason, I bought it.

We walked across the shallow creek and climbed up to the meadow on the other side, where I found another little bouquet in a tree. I turned around and looked at him inquisitively, realizing something was afoot...but he gave me no clues. He pointed up ahead, and I kept walking, noticing that the path through the meadow was marked by several more bouquets of flowers, leading to the edge of the woods. As we made our way along the path, I was silent with anticipation. I was living in a slow motion universe.

There at the opening to the wooded area, I saw a larger bouquet hanging from a canopy-tree...and I asked, "Should I keep walking?"
"That's the idea," he said, and so I walked under the canopy and peered down into the woods, and gasped.

What stood before me was a breathtaking scene: a small table and chairs, set for a romantic dinner, in a clearing between some trees. The creek trickled by gently just a few feet below us. There were flower arrangements and candles nestled into the mossy ground.

Jonathan seated me at the table, and cued some music. I looked at the table. He had thought of everything: tablecloth, wine glasses, silverware, petite bottles of olive oil and balsamic vinegar, a small pepper grinder, and plates and napkins in beautifully coordinated warm orange tones (my favorite color).

All of a sudden he was asking me to be his wife, and I was saying yes!



I shed a few tears, and he put a stunning solitaire on my finger, and then we ate a gourmet meal, which he had prepared ahead and stashed there in the woods...

Fresh mozzarella, yummy bread, salad with artichoke hearts, feta, olives and tomatoes, a nice bottle of Chianti, spaghetti with homemade sauce and shaved parmesan. (I later learned he had made the sauce at 2 am before driving out to Neskowin to set it up in the wee hours.)

After dinner, we walked out of the woods and across another meadow, wine glasses in hand, to find blankets set up under a big tree...and there we had homemade blackberry cobbler and homemade vanilla ice cream!

What an amazing surprise...a beautiful evening...a moment we will remember for the rest of our lives. I can't wait to begin our life together.