Wednesday, January 17, 2007

The Proposal

The venue: Paris, France.
The day started off as any normal day would. I got up around 7am and felt fine. That would soon change as this day would sharply change the course of my life forever. The night before I arranged for certain things to happen and tied up a few loose ends that I could only tie up when in Paris. You see, we (her parents, her, and I) only arrived in the city at 5pm the previous night. I was franticly on the move from the first hour....

At 8am Christianne was awoken by a knock at her door. A nice lady delivered for a dozen pink roses with a note from me telling her to, "Meet me at 1245pm in the lobby. We are heading to the Tower." It was during this waiting time that the events of the day started to set in. My breathing patterns altered and I was having a surreal experience. I mean, I am 28 years old. At some point you begin to wonder if this day will ever happen.....But, alas, it was here and the excitement, pressure, etc. of the moment was setting in. I spent time with the Lord..praying, meditating, asking for His blessing. 1245 was upon me.

I had a private car waiting at the hotel. Christianne met me in the lobby and we headed to the Eiffel Tower. It was a windy day, with a little sprinkle in the air. We waited about an hour and a half to get into the site. It was worth the wait. We made our way to the top of the Tower, the place I had intended to "seize the moment". It was way too crowded there though. I desired a little more privacy, since I had wrote her a personal poem.


We made our way back to the "2nd floor", which is still pretty high up there. There we found a little bench, like a tailor made seat for a proposal. I told her to sit down and I read her my poem...it concluded with, "Christianne Felo, will you be my wife, and be mine for the rest of your life?" She said, "Yes!" At 315 pm local time I was engaged. I prayed for us right afterward, right there, and then we made our way back down. We got back to the hotel...

Her 2nd dozen roses were waiting in her room as we got back. They were white this time, with a note saying, "Meet me in the lobby at 7pm, and be wearing your best." I got ready for the night of our engagement. My body was in a tizzy. I was excited and emotional all day..I was shaking form the moment..it was a great feeling; a once in a lifetime feeling. 7pm was here.

She looked elegant and beautiful (but she always does) as she made her way to me. I even had a suit on!!! We met in the lobby where our exclusive transportation picked us up. We made our way to the Seine River (which cuts right through the middle of Paris). It was the nightcap of our thrilling day: A Dinner Cruise on the Seine River. We were promptly ushered on board and to our table right on the glass of the boat..the best view possible. We were treated to a fine 3 course meal, cheeses, live entertainment, and all the wine we wanted (obviously, we didn't take much advantage of that part!!). It ended at 11pm and we headed back to the hotel....

The day was winding down. Tomorrow I would wake up as an engaged man, and her as an engaged woman...but first, she had one last set of roses awaiting her. A dozen red roses. This time the note said, "To my fiance. These symbolize romance and love. I love you."

The day concluded.

She said she felt like a princess that day. That was my goal, and by the grace and power of God, I was able to deliver. Thank you Lord for love like this....