The Rest of the Story

For our first Valentine’s Day, I took Julie to The Joshua Wilton House.  It was the fanciest restaurant in Harrisonburg and boy did we feel fancy.  I think it went a long way in impressing her, but also set the bar a bit high for future Valentine’s  Day’s.

Julie was a server at Chili’s for most of college.  I would go in from time to time to sit in her section.  She would give me what she could for free, dessert, drinks, maybe an appetizer.  But all the savings was lost for me because I would tip very generously.  Hey, I am not above a bit of bribery to make sure a girl that I really liked, liked me in return.

Privacy was hard to come by when we both had roommates in our efficiency type dorm rooms.  I remember once taking Julie out for ice cream and to watch the sun set.  After we finished our ice cream, one thing led to another and Julie and I stated to make out sitting on a hill by an elementary school.  I guess one of the neighbors was suspicious of us being there, so our brief moment of privacy was interrupted by a police siren. 

I don’t remember exactly when it was, but there was a weekend when we organized both of our parents to come to JMU for the weekend.  Unbeknownst to us, both sets of parents, on their own, thought that we were going to announce an engagement.  At the time, this seemed crazy to Julie and I.  We were young and having fun with the leisure of college life.  We loved each other.  We spent a ton of time together, but marriage wasn't on our radar screen.  Looking back though, it would have made a lot of sense.  If either of us stopped long enough to think about it, we were made for one another.  Our relationship just seemed to fit.  That, added to the fact that my future Father in law passed away just 2 weeks before our wedding, makes hindsight on this clear as day.

Graduation time came, and in a time in my life when all seemed gray and hazy, one thing was clear ... whatever was to come, be it greatness or failure, pleasant or somber, simple or foreboding ... I needed Julie by my side, in my corner, cheering me on, each step of the way.   

“May I have your blessing, to marry your daughter?” I know … a bit old fashioned.  But it was the right thing to do and a direct request of my future bride.  I knew Julie’s parents well and didn't expect anything but full throated support … but still.  I was at Julie’s house for a weekend and I pulled John and Trudy aside and asked if it would be OK if I would marry their daughter.  Trudy actually jumped, clapped her hands and cheered.  John gave me a big smile and a firm handshake.  I felt so lucky to be joining such a fun and loving family.

I am a rather impulsive person, for being so introspective.  I take my time in making a decision, but when my mind is made up, I tend to leap right in to get it done.  This led to a small problem when it came to the proposal.  We were lounging around my apartment, talking about the future.  This was after graduation and everyone had pretty much left school for the summer or for good.  It came to a point in the conversation that I thought would be an appropriate time to ask Julie to marry me.  Now, I am going to pause here to let you know that I was somewhat naive to importance that is placed on the proposal.  I want to make it clear, Julie did not turn me down, but the stipulation was attached to the “Yes”, that the proposal would be repeated.  Turns out that I ended up proposing about a dozen more times over the next year or so, the last being delivered by roses to her changing room at the church on our wedding day.  I came to quite enjoy asking Julie to marry me over and over, hearing her say “Yes” every time!

The first time I saw Julie on our wedding day was at the back of the church, at the end of the isle, walking toward me to become my wife.  That moment will forever be etched in my memory as the first time I understood what it would be to see an angel coming toward you.  She was stunning in her white dress and had a smile on her face that brought tears to my eyes.  I am so lucky to have found Julie.  I could not ask for better wife and friend to spend the rest of my days with.