Will You Marry Me?

He is the same today as he was the day we shared our first cup of coffee, steady but supple, strong but soft, patient, composed and assured because life has presented him with a choice and he is ready to experience all he envisioned. This is why I have fallen in love with this man.

Love is….

Patient

Kind

It does not envy

It does not boast

It is not proud

It does not dishonor

It is not self-seeking

It is not easily angered

It keeps no record of wrongs

Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with truth

It always protects

Always trusts

Always hopes

Always perseveres 

He held my hand and guided me down the boardwalk ramp onto the soft, damp sand that the tide left behind. He was unusually quiet this evening, a strange mix of urgency and aloofness. 

As the sun settled below the horizon, we settled into an area that was tucked away amongst the tall, lush beds of seagrass. The landscape was picturesque, so much so that I was compelled to capture its very essence. I untwined my fingers from his and turned toward the ocean which acted as a backdrop for the swaying grass. I have taken at least a hundred photos of this beach, but none of a night such as this.

“Honey,”  I heard Carl say softly. I turned, fully expecting to find this sweet man holding his hand out for mine, just simply wanting to enjoy the ambiance hand in hand. Rather, he was with one knee in the sand looking up at me with a smile that lit the darkening sky. I could see he was holding a small opened box with something that seemed to be catching the brilliance of his smile, but I couldn’t completely focus on anything but his beautiful face. “Will you marry me?” he said in a voice that almost wasn’t.

In an instant, I pieced together all the unusual events of the evening. I met his eyes with pure focus and elated laughter. “Ask me again,” I said with a silly smile. I didn’t want the moment to be over.

“Will you marry me?” he asked with a more playful tone this time.

“Yes! Yes, yes!” I joyfully responded.

My eyes now turning to the illuminating box held tightly in his hand. The ring had an intricate flower design and in the center a diamond that dazzled my eyes like a sky filled with millions of stars. Realizing I was in a deep trance, I quickly helped my new sea legged fiance’ to his feet. Making it official, he placed the ring, which symbolizes all he envisioned, on my finger.