Capturing the Magic

Ever have one of those days when all you want to do is get into your pajamas and hang out in bed, under your feather quilt, with some tea or cocoa and a movie or a book? That was last night for me.

It was cold, well, not even seasonably cold, but colder than it has been and that was enough to be too cold for me (who, it turns out, is apparently a weather snob). My day had been long - starting with a workout at 7:15am, running home to shower and change, then back to work (the gym is literally next door), then a long day at work, then run to mom’s daycare for a Chanukkah party, then dinner with mom.

I had been out of the house over 12 hours, and I was tired, brain dead and cold. All I wanted was a shower, pajamas and bed.

The house was dark, except the lights from our Chanukiot in the window. When I walked in, I smelled something sweet, perfumy in the air and couldn’t believe my eyes.

The staircase was covered in Rose petals. Red, pink. Pink, red. A riot of Love and Color. And alternating right and left, there was a candle on each step, lit, aromatic, and leading me to the darkened second floor, where I knew Chewbacca was waiting.

I whispered to my mom, "Are those for me?" She whispered "Well, they’re not for me!". So I whispered, "I’m going upstairs now" and she replied "That’s a good idea."

Carefully, I walked upstairs, anticipating, excited, in a daze, and nervous. All was dark. I went into my room and stopped dead in my tracks.

Chewy had strewn rose petals all over my floor. And on top of those fragrant petals was a heart made from candles, flanked on three sides by bouquets of flowers, and propped up behind was the words to our song (This Kind of Love by Sister Hazel) on a beautiful poster.

Then Chewy stepped out of the shadows. He looked fantastic. He was wearing a dark suit, French Cuffed shirt and he was stylin’! And I had missed him because he had been so distracted the past few days, it had created distance between us and I missed our closeness. I reached for him and said "Hi". He said, "Shhh, I’m on a schedule" then said, "Ok, you can say hi, that’s ok, Hi".

Then Chewbacca read me a poem he wrote about why he loves me, and got down on his knee for the last 4 lines, opened up a box which held a necklace and matching bracelet (the ring is on order) and asked me to marry him.

(I said Yes in case you were wondering)

The rest of the night is like a blur. People started coming over, family members and close friends. It is traditional to make a toast to the new couple on the night they become engaged to add a positive energy/karma to their union. The house was humming with the amount of people who came. There was so much joy and love and affection pouring out from everyone, people were so genuinely pleased for us, it was humbling, awe inspiring and precious. We frantically made phone calls to family and friends who were too far away to join us (though it seemed to me that EVERYONE knew already, as they had been clued in prior to the event. Everyone knew except me!)

The proposal was not only romantic, well thought out, well executed and ....well, perfect. It was exactly what I wanted. I am skittish about surprises and really don’t like public displays. This was private, between us, shared by no one in the moment, and something that we can treasure with each other forever.

Oh, and in case you’re wondering, I didn’t get to put on my pajamas until the wee hours of the morning......but I’m not complaining.