tomshaggy.com | seeing what you thought you didn't see

We stood at the entrance to the park. Closed.

Just my luck.  We stood for a moment looking around.  The sky was overcast and the wind blew steadily. I could only look at her briefly so I wouldn’t give anything away.  I’m sure she knew this was special.  We practically sprinted out of the house to get here.  I could feel it in my pocket, moving about, I tried not to play with it to much.  She looked at me with that, well-what-are-we-gonna-do-now, look on her face.  Simple.

“Let’s just go in anyway, we’ve come this far.”

She giggled. We both made our way underneath the small fence that was lowered to keep out the cars.  She skipped ahead and I lagged behind a bit recited my endless lines.  I didn’t know the first thing about doing this or how to even start I was hoping she knew so I could laugh it off quick and she could guide me the rest of the way.  Wishful thinking I guess.

The lake was vast with small little islands that seemed to float randomly about the middle of the lake.  The fog had rolled in and had made this less than the ideal day to be here.  But! I told myself I was going to and I wasn’t backing down.  We talked along the path that we walked around the lake.  My hands began to shake.  I was rambling more than talking to her.  The wind had died down and it had warmed up a bit.  There was no excuse for me to be so cold. We sat down on a picnic table, I had stalled long enough.

I took her by the hand. “So I was thinking the other day of the past few years and what it has truly meant to me.  I don’t have enough time on this earth to tell you what that has meant to me.  All I know is that the time that we have been together has made me realize the need for so much more.  I was a person years ago that I may not always have been happy with.  I did things that I was not always proud, but the day I met you it became a different story all together.  There is not a day I regret the person I am anymore and it’s because you are here with me.  You’ve showed me what it is to be true to myself and to someone I love.  I did not know I could love another as much as I love you,” she attempted to interrupt, “wait just let me finish.”

My body was shaking.  “Are you cold?” She asked.

“Mary,” I grabbed her hands tighter, ” I love you more than anything in this world and I want to spend the rest of my life showing you everyday.” He eyes filled with water. I got down on one knee and reached into my pocket.  The small box trembled in my hand.  I showed it to her and click open the top. “Will you marry me?”

Her eyes, now erupting with tears, could not even hide the smile she had.  Her heart sank and was filled with joy.  I’m not sure I even know how to describe her reaction.  Through all the smiles and tears and sniffles I could make out only one word and it was all I needed to hear. “Yes.”  I took her in my arms and told her once more that I loved her.

When we had pulled back into the driveway to the house my dad, uncle, and brother stood at the entrance of the garage.  They had known for weeks this was going to happen, but what they didn’t know was how it would all unfold.  Mary was still in shock when we pulled into the driveway.  I rubbed her back a little bit before exiting the car. As I moved around the front of the car to open the door for her I could see her burst into tears again, followed by a big laugh.  I opened up the door and it took her a few minutes to exit the car, but this was her time.  She could take all the time she needed.  I looked towards my family.  They all just stood and smiled at me.  When Mary was finally ready to get out I took her by the hand and helped her out.  She was having trouble walking and still crying and laughing at the same time.  She held out her hand.

“Look how beautiful the ring is…”

I looked to my brother who is older than I.  I knew right then that he knew I made the right choice and I was becoming the man that I was supposed to be, he was proud of me.  My dad came over and gave Mary a hug and welcomed her to the family.  My life was going by a thousand miles an hour and I was holding on by my fingernails, but I was thankful for the endless support my family gave me.