10 Years Ago....

10 years ago today, I made one of the most important decisions of my life.  

I agreed to marry Robert. 

I was a freshman at USI and he was a Private in the Marine Corps.  We'd been dating just over 7 months and we were madly in love.  It was Valentine's Day and he had made arrangements to fly in and visit me for the weekend.  My roommates (who I later found out were in on his plans) were single and chose to throw an anti-Valentine's Day party in my roommate Jenn Jo's hometown.  They vacated the apartment hours before he arrived and I cleaned up and headed out to the tiny Evansville airport to pick him up.  After a joyous reunion in the airport terminal (it had been a month and a half since we'd seen each other, and when you're in love, that's an eternity), we drove back to my apartment.  

Shortly after arriving, we decided to exchange gifts.  Being the poor college student that I was, I sprung for an ultra-trendy, yet easy-on-my-wallet, shirt from Hollister.  After giving it to him, he hands me a book.  A book of poetry to be exact.  I love poetry.  Truly, in the most nerdy way possible.  I used to write poetry (I was even published once!) and I love to read it.  I love how it speaks to everyone differently and you have to think about it to figure out what it really means to you.  I have several poetry books with notes filling the margins.  So, this was a perfect gift!  I was thrilled.  I took my time searching the table of contents at the beginning, exclaiming things like, "Oh, he's one of my favorites!" and "I love that one!"  Robert, being rather patient (or extremely nervous), let me take my time, before pointing out that he had marked one of his favorites.  He flipped to a page where a poem was starred and a heart-shaped bookmark with a ring tied to it was placed.  This is the poem he marked:

Somewhere

Somewhere their waiteth in this world of ours

For one lone soul, another lonely soul-

Each chasing each through all the weary hours,

And meeting strangely at one sudden goal;

Then blend they- like green leaves with golden flowers,

Into one beautiful and perfect whole-

And life's long night is ended, and the way

Lies open onward to eternal day.

Sir Edwin Arnold

I truly can't remember exactly what he said because I was so shocked.  Shocked that I (the girl who had never had a serious relationship and ran at the first utterance of the L-word) was sitting with a guy that I knew I wanted to spend the rest of my life with and he felt the same way!  My head was spinning with thoughts like, "Is he for real?" "This is too good to be true."  and, of course, above all, "Yes! Yes! Yes!"

And, the rest, as they, is history..... :)