Saturday, November 1, 2008

The Engagement! (the groom's side of the story)

So, for those of you who are interested in how I (Robert) experienced our engagement; this is your lucky day! Because I will tell you how it all went down from my perspective :)

In order to propose I needed a ring. To make a long story short, I had 2 weeks to get one! I searched and searched, after several visits to jewellery stores I didn't have anything yet. SO many options, I kept thinking and wondering "which one would Melissa like? Which one is Melissa's ring?". Then in the weekend of 4 october (on Saturday) while chatting with Melissa, the topic came up and out of the blue she sends me this picture of a ring she really likes! Bingo! So now I had a better idea and it was a type of ring I'd already seen before in the stores so my chances of success just got a boost!

Luckily, through my dad I have some hook-ups that make it easier for me to get a nicer (more expensive) ring, really fast. My luck was even greater when my dad told me that on that monday the 6th, there was this monthly fair where all the wholesalers are selling their stuff to jewellery store owners. He told me he could probably get me in as well and we could go watch some rings and perhaps find 'the one'. And I did. I basically found the exact same ring that was on the picture Melissa had sent that weekend. It also was exactly Melissa's size as well. The man who helped was funny too. He basically looked at me with this face that said "dude, are you going to take it or take it, this is the ring, I know it, your dad knows it, you should know it too". He actually said that sometimes it's just meant to be, a ring is predestined...I believe him. From the moment I sat down and looked at the ring to the moment I said "I'll take it" no more than 10 minutes had passed. I have to say it doesn't happen very often I take decisions with such large consequences that fast. It was kind of refreshing and fun to do! I was SOOO happy! I could just take the ring with me right away as well :D.

This all happened during my lunch break...so that was actually really cool, I go away for about 45minutes, none of my colleagues know where I went and I come back and I've bought an engagement ring. Yes! I like it.

All I could do then was wait for the 15th, the day that I would fly to the USA (and watch the ring over and over again...). I was kind of nervous since I was travelling with this ring that's worth a small car!! "What if they find it? Do I have to pay customs taxes or something? Will I be able to get into the country safe?"...I had put my ring in a little plastic bag and had wrapped it tightly in it. Then I had put it in my wallet so that the coins in my wallet would kind of conceil the ring when they put it in the x-ray machine...since it would hopefully be masked by the many coins....I had really given it a lot of thought. I also felt anxious everytime I had to give my backpack away and let it be scanned in the machine..what if they'd take my backpack!! I tried to play it cool though and pretend I was just the average traveller. I guess it worked because I could hold Mylissa again in my arms together with all my luggage on the evening of October 15th.

So I didn't really have something planned for the proposal nor did I really know when to propose either. The first 2 days didn't really feel like there were any good opportunities to propose. And day 3 wasn't either. Melissa scared me too when she said she has a size 6. For some reason the thought had emerged in my brain that she was a size 6. I was really worried the ring I got her was a size 5, or was it? I got SO confused...so dumb.
But on Sunday I felt like it had to be the day. I could tell Melissa wasn't expecting me to propose but she really wanted me to (for a long time I'm afraid...sorry sweety for letting you wait for so long! I'll make it up to you somehow!) Anyway, we found out too late that church was earlier, so I suggested to go for a walk. But where? Well, I asked Melissa what here favorite place in Logan is. She said Lundstrom park. I remember that place well too. So we took some Dutch study books, a bottle of water and I took my little heart-shaped padded pink box that I'd bought in a store under the Petronas-towers in Kuala Lumpur containing the ring. During our walk Melissa tried to take a peek in my little backpack but I made sure that she wouldn't get that peek while at the same time making it seem there was nothing in the bag she wasn't supposed to see anyway...I guess that worked sufficiently because she didn't suspect anything :)

After studying Dutch for 75 minutes we needed to get active and move a bit again (and stop studying Dutch). So we danced and 'twirled' a bit...I knew the moment was getting closer that we'd naturally leave the park and go home..."Uh oh", I thought to myself "I need to ask Melissa something"! It's important! I kept thinking "what do I say, how do I say..."...Eventually I just took out the box and said it as it was. That I had something for her and that I had a question to go with what is in the box.

"....are you serious?".....


NOT really what I expected to be the first words coming out of Melissa's mouth....but it was soon followed by my yes, after which she said YES!! It's serious! HA HAAA! :D

It was just happy then! I was literally shaking on my feet, trembling! I've never 'done' that. I was 'shakin' in my boots' :D So I can say that this was truly one of the most intense, memorable and most joyful moments in my life so far..!

The End.

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