engaged

Yes, I am actually going to get married! Some people have been asking me why it’s taken me so long, my answer has been, “We haven’t even been dating six months yet!” Which is true. It just seems that our closest friends and family have expected that we would hitch up and we went slower than expected. As one friend put it, “Some people you just know are supposed to be together.”

Well, I don’t want to write a long message about how we got together, so please read A Story Nineteen Years In The Making. It will explain most everything and then come back and finish the rest and I’ll fill in the gaps from my side.

Well, lets go chronologically. First, somewhere in the following 2-3 years after she moved, I do remember seeing her at camp meeting. But we didn’t talk and I was too shy to even say hi.

The next would be about my side of getting to that point. As most of my friends know, I’m regretfully and thankfully divorced. But this isn’t about that sad part, so, I move on. I basically told anyone that asked, “I’m going to wait until God drops someone in my lap, because it’s going to take someone special to marry a divorced guy and be compatible with me.” I’ll come back to this, and yes, the italics are intentional.

Women’s retreat, three sessions a year of 200-300 women at each. The first year that I ran sound, everyone teased me about meeting someone at the retreats. Well, three retreats passed and as I figured, nothing. The next year, no one teased me about it, ironically. It was at the second one that Kellie and I met. Now, I wrote it off as nothing more than a friendship right off the bat, as well. But here’s some info to illustrate how well we clicked. Within half an hour to an hour, we could read each others minds, or as Ali puts it, “mindspeak.” Emotions/thoughts could fly across her face and I could tell the whole thought process she had just gone through. (This has only gotten stronger with time, it’s almost scary how well we can read each other!) Another thing is that the guy I work with and others thought we were old friends that had gone through school together. They had no clue that we had just really “met” for the first time. Also, some friends, including the women’s ministries leader immediately started praying for us. I found this out semi-recently and it blew my mind away. I think the only friend that totally grasped the situation was quite confused.

Well, time to hit up a couple months later. She forgets the part where she actually asked me to put together the slideshow tribute the day before I was going to pass through. By the time I left I already had arranged to stay the first night. Without getting into the details as well, I basically got there just in time to be the support she needed. But that wasn’t by my own power, God had been preparing me over the week prior to be there for her. And getting back to the italics, she did basically drop into my lap. I was prepared to walk away at that point if she didn’t want to date me, but thankfully, she did.

The rest is history … well, so was what I wrote, but that’s beside the point.

I’m sure we’ll be posting more as things get closer to the wedding. Oh, and the story about the engagement will have to wait for another time. Sorry … well, not really. Suspense is good for you.

cheers!