Marriage proposal

Waking up and reading news on the BBC is a habit that I had cultivated over the last 4 years. This morning, one particular article tickled me. It was a piece on a Dutch guy who was proposing to his gf with a plan of serenading her from the window of her bedroom from the platform of a crane. The crane was not secured properly and it went crashing into the neighbour's home! They tried lifting the crane and it went crashing down a second time and did even more extensive damage as by now, the crane is entirely lifted off the ground! The good news is the gf accepted the proposal and no one was hurt in the incident.

This brings back sweet memories of Sam's proposal. It happened a week before our Registration of Marriage (ROM). I had, by then, thought the proposal was never coming. Yes, we were already planning our ROM but a proposal is every girl's dream come true!

As the date of our ROM drew closer, I began thumb twirling and felt anxious. I thought he wouldn't be proposing anymore.

 

How absolutely wrong I was! I had no idea he had something up his sleeves. The weekend before our ROM, he told me he had to attend a course. We met up with his work mates the night before and they all affirmed the fact that they had a full-day course the following day. So I made plans with my gal friend to hang out for the day.

He left around 6 in the morning. I headed out for brunch with my gal pal and told her about my concerns. She assured me that everything would turn out just fine. We went window shopping and took a cruise in an indoor canal. And then, she led me to the newest hotel in town, saying that she wanted to meet a friend who was working there. During all this time, she had numerous phone calls and she would walk off and talk on her mobile. It did raise suspicions at one point, but I laughed it off. And she confided that she was room hunting and the agents were calling for arrangement of viewing appointments. So, I let it slide.

At the lobby of the hotel, we bumped into Sam's cousin! And it struck me as a little odd. But he explained that he was there for work, and they needed to quote the hotel on renovations at the pool area. He brought us up to the pool as it needed a special access card. Then he proceeded to walk us around the pool, whilst asking me for renovation ideas! We then proceeded to a cafe and ordered drinks and began snapping photos.

View from the top of the hotel

My gal pal specifically requested that I snap a photo of her, and so I was happily snapping away, when I heard Sam's voice coming from behind me.

'Will you marry me?' I thought I heard his voice say.

I whirled around in amazement but saw no one. And then I looked down, for he was there, on one bended knee.

I blurted out, 'What are you doing here? Why aren't you at your training?'.

He smiled and calmly said, "I asked you a question. Will you please answer it? Will you marry me?'.

I said "YES!" and we hugged each other and tears of joy streamed down our faces.

Once we were done with our drinks, he then surprised me by telling me that we'd be spending the night in the hotel, and that he had returned home to collect our clothes after I left home! Sam had planned it all so well! He had roped in our friends and his cousin to help him out. 2 of his friends helped to decorate the room.

our room for the night

He proceeded with the last surprise of the day. He rang up room service and asked for a microwave. I was really puzzled. He took out 4 dishes, rice and a bottle of wine.  It turned out, he had rang up my Mum to ask what were my favourite food, and then spent the morning at the market, picking out ingredients with his aunt. And he cooked them all, with slight help from his aunt. This from someone who does not know how to cook, really was very impressive and I felt so touched.

The only one that wasn't on my favourite list is the veg, but it didn't matter as it was all so tasty! 

We wined, dined and then headed for a dip in the pool (which was freezing cold) and then chilled out by the jacuzzi. The next morning was glorious as we spent even more time at the pool before leaving the hotel. Verdict? I was totally blown away! I never knew he had it in him! LOL. Reasons why I love this man. More than 2 years has passed since the day he proposed, yet everyday I fall in love with him all over again.

Absence makes the heart grow fonder

Life for both of us now is split between 2 countries. Work and life for Sam is in one country. I, on the other hand, have no choice but to exit the country frequently. Life for me is two thirds in one country and a third in our original country. My work remains back home. The constant travelling is tiring, but it is good to have some income coming in.

The time apart can get a little unbearable at times. Sam had to learn to cook in  my absence. We both experienced feeling disorientated in the mornings when we wake up, alone in separate beds, in different countries. On the days when we're both not working, we spend our time in front of our laptops, on Skype. We have our meals together that way too. We bid each other good night through Skype as well. We wished things were different but we haven't reached the point whereby we're able to make changes in it yet. And so we wait, patiently, for time to pass. Time that seems to pass at its own accord, slowly.

Being apart does make us appreciate our time when we're physically in the same place. It is a reminder of how fragile life really is, that nothing really is predictable and to treasure what we have, every second of the day.

We are reaching the end of our tunnel. Soon, there will be no more whining and complaining of being on our own quite so much. We have come a long, long way together in our short time together. We have grown stronger as individuals as well as a couple. We have surprised ourselves when we realised how much sacrifices we've made just to be together the past 4 years. Regrets, we have none. In years to come, we shall look back at the past few years, where we've been so financially strapped but managed to pull it through, with love and determination. My heart and my home is wherever Sam is. 

Putting my needs above his own

My complaints did not fall on deaf ears. Hubby dearest served up 2 breakfast in bed sessions for me over 2 consecutive days! Now, this might be nothing for anyone, but for Sam to actually get out of bed before noon is remarkable. It's a feat all on its own! I'm grateful and not complaining. It is him, going out of his way, putting my needs above his very own.

The rainbows and blue skies are back in our lives. Don't I just wish to have breakfast in bed every morning served up by hubby?