Whitney’s Dream: Getting Married at McDonald’s

For the past week or so, I have been having dreams about weddings and wedding plans.

Some of the dreams have been good.  Some of them have been bad.  Some have been just plain weird.

Last night I had a dream that I took a trip to the McDonalds near Campbell University (where I go to school) with Aaron and both of our families.  But, we were not going there to eat.  We were going there because Aaron and I were getting married at McDonalds.  (What?!)

When we got there, we went inside.  In my dream, the only reason I was hesitant about this location was because this McDonalds was about one hour away from all of our friends at Journey.  And it was thirty minutes from my house, where our reception was going to be.  (I was apparently not hesitant about the flies, dirty floors, greasy smell, and everything else that you experience at McDonalds.  In my dream, the McDonalds seemed like a perfectly wonderful place to get married.)

Anyway, as we walked in, I told my mother about my qualms, and she assured me everything would be fine.  People would come to my wedding even if they had to drive an hour.  And they would not mind driving thirty minutes to the reception.  I had a hard time believing her.

My wedding was such a big deal that they had closed the McDonalds just so we could tour the facility.

A McDonalds employee came out to greet us.  She did not look too happy that she was the one that had to show us around.

She told us they would clear out the tables, chairs, and benches so there would be room for an aisle, and they would provide chairs for people to sit in.  The kitchen would be closed as well.

She took us to where Aaron and I would stand.  I stood there and looked around.

I turned to my mother and asked if there was any possible way we could do this at the McDonalds right by my house.  I was really worried that this one was too far away.

My mother said no.  Unfortunately, this was the only McDonalds that performed weddings.

That’s really all I remember about my dream.  I guess it was more like a nightmare.  I have no idea what made my brain think up that insane scenario.  I mean, I haven’t even eaten anything from McDonalds in weeks…

Also, just in case you’re worried, we are definitely not getting married at McDonalds.  Even if it’s close to home.  🙂

Engagement Day: The Beginning of the End

After we left the park, I drove back to my house.  We had about two hours to take showers, change clothes, and get ready.  I had made dinner reservations downtown for 6pm.

As a final element, I had also arranged for everyone that had been a part of the day to regroup at the end of the day after dinner along with our parents at another place at 8pm.  I realized in the car ride back to my house, that apparently no one had spilled the scoop on this aspect, and that the regrouping at 8pm would actually be a surprise to Whitney.  I guess I had never really intended for that to be a surprise, but the fact it actually would be one was an added bonus.

When we walked in the door, my roommates and Vesal were there.  What if one of them said something about 8pm?  Even a simple, “See you around eight!” comment would have spoiled it.

We said hey to everyone, exchanged hugs, congratulations, and showed off the ring.  Whitney’s clothes for dinner were in her car, and so we had to go back outside to get them.  As we walked to her car, I sent a quick text to Patrick, “Whitney doesn’t know about 8pm.  Don’t mention it.”

I hoped they read it.

We left for dinner around 5:30.  Fortunately, and to my relief, we made it out of the house without anyone mentioning the 8pm regrouping.

We went to dinner at Solas, downtown.  It was one of the first places she and I went together, before we were actually dating.  We had gone there to celebrate her birthday, and it was where I had planned to talk to her originally about dating her.  That plan fell through that night because of other reasons, and it probably worked out better that way. Of course it did.  We were engaged now.

Dinner was nice, and we got to sit at a table for two, surrounded by white draping, fabric.  It was elegant, quiet, and everything else faded into the background.  We continued to talk about the day, reliving all the moments. I revealed that I had bought the ring months ago, that I had tortured her with stories about having no money to be engaged, and tricked her into thinking I was incredibly nervous about talking to her parents, when in truth, I had bought the ring, and I had talked to her parents without her ever knowing.  (Those are all fun stories to us now, and I will take great pleasure in scribing some of them later.)

Everything had gone so well.  I couldn’t let go of her hand all during our time together at dinner.  We still had some time to waste, so we sat there for a while.  It was so good to be together after a day of being apart.  Now, we were engaged, promised, to each other.

After we finished eating, we went for a walk.  Our feet hurt in our shoes.  Hiking trails earlier that day in flip-flops hadn’t helped either.  I rarely wear shoes, so now when I do, the backs of my heels sometimes scrape and bleed.  Isn’t that romantic?  They weren’t bleeding.  But they did hurt.  I wanted to put my flip-flops back on.  But, the film director inside me said no.

Her feet weren’t doing well either.  She was wearing new shoes and they weren’t quite worn in yet.

We walked back to the car, and I opened the door, letting her in.  (By the way gents, open the door for your lady, dating, engaged, or married.  It is courteous and chivalrous.  I make a point to always do this, and in our ten months together have only forgotten three times, and felt horrible about it.  Whitney knows this, and will stand by the door expectedly now, not even bothering to reach for the handle.  Now, I will climb down from my soapbox…)

We drove across town to our final stop.  It was a restaurant we frequented often, and this was where we would meet everyone to celebrate the day.  Nearly everyone would be there.  A few couldn’t make it because of prior commitments or obligations.  Our parents would be there too.

We pulled up and parked out in front.  We walked inside and she saw our parents.  A good surprise!

“I didn’t know they would be here!”

“They’re here, and others are coming!”

We hugged them, and talked for a while.  We waited for everyone to arrive.  Whitney, wisely, had saved every scrap of every clue from the day.  It was still in my car from earlier.

My mom had put together several pictures of us in a white frame for Whitney.  It was a frame Whitney had wanted, but didn’t want to buy for herself, because it was money she wouldn’t spend.  My mom had asked earlier in the week if there was something she could buy Whitney, and I told her about it.  It was perfect.

On the corners of the frame, my mom had jokingly placed a princess crown and a frog.  Whitney was the princess for obvious reasons.  Apparently I was the frog.  I didn’t mind the insult too much as it was also a nod to the upcoming Disney movie, “The Princess and the Frog” that Whitney and I are very excited about.

We opened Renee’s letter from earlier.  It was a card.  Inside were several quotes, and one, attributed to Dante, read: “Remember tonight, for it is the beginning of always.”

Everyone arrived, and once we were settled I announced that we would now tell the story with all the pieces put together.  I would lead, and say my part, read the clues that we had brought.  Whitney would tell her perspective, and then each person would tell his/her perspective.  It took about an hour for us to get to the end of the day.

It was fun to hear everyone’s perspective.  They would say things like, “the look on her face,” or “she was so surprised.”  With each story, Whitney’s face glowed.  Each friend gave his/her perspective and I could tell that Whitney had been enjoying every moment of the day. It was memorable and some of those closest to us were invited to be a part of it.

Our friends and family help shape us into who we are, so isn’t only fitting to have them be a part of the biggest and best days of our lives?  I thought so.

After the story, I thanked everyone for making the day special.  I thanked our parents for being examples to me and Whitney.  Without our friends, without our family, this whole day would have been just a game, a middle-school scavenger hunt with a ring as the prize.  Instead, this twisted labyrinth through Raleigh became a celebration of friendship and love at each stop.

The night ended.  It had been a long day, but a great one, a full one.

It had been a long day, but a great one, a full one.

We drove back to my house, where her car was.  She would have to drive herself home, a twelve mile trek.  It was hard to say goodbye that night, for obvious reasons.  But we would see each other in the morning.  We would start tomorrow differently.  We would wake up knowing that somehow we had found each other, and that being found, being loved by another person, being promised to that person, is the greatest thing in the world.

Our story was an adventure, and epic one, and worth telling whether anyone wanted to read it or hear it.

The quote from Renee’s card seemed to suit us well.

“…the beginning of always.”

This day, this night, was certainly that. But the rest of our lives…that’s the real story.

We look forward to writing it, to living it, together.

Always.

Engagement Day: Whitney’s Story: Part Seven

My mom answered the phone.

“Hi,” I said.

“Hey…how’s it going? Where are you?”

“Good.  I just left Amanda at Journey.  I’m on my way to the park.  Amanda made me change.”  (I’m not blaming Amanda, don’t worry.)

“What?  Why?  Why did you change?  What are you wearing?”

This was not the reaction I hoped for.  I panicked.

“What do you mean?!  I changed because I’m going to the park so I’m wearing tennis shoes and I couldn’t wear my skirt because I’m going to be walking so I’m wearing jeans and a black tank top!  Why did you say it like that?!” I said in a high-pitched voice.

“I don’t know!  Say it like what?  What black tank top?”

“What?!  I don’t know!  Just a plain black one!  Why does it matter?!”

“It doesn’t!!  I just wondered why you changed!  Did you want to change?”

“NO! But I did, and now it’s too late!  What am I supposed to do?!  Stop somewhere and go in a bathroom?!”  I’m over-dramatic sometimes.

“I don’t know!  Do you want to change back into what you had on?  It was so nice!”

“I KNOW! That’s why I didn’t want to change!  You have totally freaked me out!”

“No!  I didn’t mean to freak you out!”

“Well, you did!  I can’t talk to you anymore!”

“What?!  Why not?!”

I was frantically trying to think of a solution.  There was no way I was calling Aaron.  I did not want to talk to him.  But, if I couldn’t talk to him, maybe someone else could.

“Hey, you know Aaron’s number right?  The one he is using today?”

“Yes…” she said hesitantly.  Maybe she thought I would ask for it.

“Well, can’t you call him and ask him what I should do?  Ask him if I should change back.”

“Ok.  I can do that.”

“Thanks.  Call me right back.”  I love my mom.

I hung up and tried to calm down while I waited for the phone to ring.  I was only ten minutes away.

She called back a couple minutes later.

“Aaron said that when you get to the park, you will have the option to change.  Whoever meets you there will tell you what to do.”

“What?  Who’s going to meet me there?”

“I can’t tell you anything else.  But you can change when you get there, ok?”

“Ok, thanks.  Love you.”

I hung up.  All better now.  I was almost to the exit for Harrison Avenue.

Now that I resolved the outfit issue I could think about what I was doing again.  The butterflies in my stomach were going crazy.  My heart was pounding.  My mind was racing.  I turned right into the park entrance.  I drove into the parking lot.

I scanned the cars.  It took me a minute to find him, but there he was…

Mr. Feeney.  (Did you think I was going to say Aaron?)  I was never so happy to see him as I was right now.  I drove around to park next to him.  No one was in Aaron’s car.  I guess I didn’t think anyone would be.  I glanced at the other cars around.  I didn’t recognize any of them.  Who was here to meet me?  I did not want it to be Aaron.  I wanted to change before I saw him.  I got out of my car after I grabbed my keys and my phone.

I looked around to the parking lot, the restrooms, and finally to the beginning of the trail.

There was Patrick, Aaron’s roommate.  He waved.  I smiled and started to walk towards him.

“Hi again,” I said.

He said hi.

We talked about how much I had done since I saw him that morning.

“I think I want to change,” I finally said.

“Yeah, you can change.  Where’s your stuff?”

“In the car.  Can I wear flip flops?  Is he wearing flip flops?!”

Patrick laughed.  “Yes, he’s wearing flip flops.  Flip flops will be fine.”

“Thanks.”

I went to my car and got my bag and went to the bathroom to change.  I was in a hurry.  How far would I have to go to find Aaron?  The bridge I was thinking about in my head was pretty far down the trail.  Would Patrick walk with me?

I finally finished, and made sure I still looked okay.  I brushed my hair again, and looked at myself in the mirror.  I wanted to look fairly decent.  Something big was about to happen.  I could feel it coming.  My life was about to change somehow.

I went back out to find Patrick waiting patiently.  I walked over to him.

“Now what?”

“Well, let me have all your stuff and your keys,” he replied.

“Are you taking my car?”

“Yes.”

“Ok, thanks.  Should I just walk down the trail?”

“Well, I was going to walk you to the top.”

“Right, ok, thanks.”  I was a little flustered.

We walked until we got to the edge of the trees.  It was time to say goodbye to Patrick and walk on my own.  I didn’t know how far, but I didn’t ask.  I was ready to go by myself.  I wanted to think for a minute.  I had been going non-stop all day.

I gave Patrick a hug and thanked him.  I was on my way.  Walking down a path that would lead me to Aaron Jack Bauer.  Now that, my friends, is a very good path to take.

I prayed as I walked.  I felt peaceful now.  I was not rushed anymore.  I was not second guessing what I was doing.  I knew what was happening, and I knew I was doing the right thing.

I thanked God for Aaron.  For bringing him into my life.  I wasn’t even looking for him, and one day, there he was.  He had been there all along.  He stole my heart right away.  He became my very best friend.

I can talk to him about anything.  I never get tired of being with him.  He makes me laugh.  He makes me feel safe.  I look up to him.  He’s thoughtful, wise, and he’s always fun.  He’s a little ADD and scatterbrained sometimes, but I love the challenge of keeping up with him.  I love everything about him.

I knew then what I know now:  I wanted to spend the rest of my life with Aaron Jack Bauer.

So, I kept walking.  I was watching the ground mostly.  There are a lot of rocks and branches to look out for, especially if you are wearing flip flops.

I rounded a corner and glanced up.  I stopped in my tracks for a second, my heart skipped a beat, my breath caught in my throat.

There he was.  Waiting on a bridge.  Smiling.

I smiled back.  I walked to him.  This is what I had been waiting for all day, and it was definitely worth the wait.  I gave him a hug.

“Hi.”

“Hi.”

I don’t think either of us could stop smiling.  He took my hand.

“Do you want to go for a walk?” he asked.

I nodded.

Off we went.

“So,” he said, “what did you do today?”

I laughed and played along.  “Well, you’ll never believe it, but this morning I woke up at 6:30 and there was a boy in my room!”

“What?!”

“I know…”

I told him all about my day as if he had no idea, and he would act surprised at each thing I said.

“…Then, I finally got to the park, walked down a trail, and there was the boy again.”

“And were you happy to see him?”

“Definitely.”  I kissed his cheek.  “And what did you do today?”

He gave me a brief story of his day.  We were getting to the big bridge that was on this trail.

The first time we came to the park, we played “Pooh Sticks” on that bridge.  (“Pooh Sticks” is a game we both learned from Winnie the Pooh.  You each pick up a stick from the ground, stand on the bridge, drop the sticks into the water at the same time, hurry to the other side of the bridge, and see whose stick comes under the bridge first.  That person wins.)  I won all three times we played that day.

As we approached the bridge now, he asked me if I wanted to play.

I agreed, and we both hunted for a good stick.  After we selected our worthy opponents, we went to the bridge.

He counted to three, and we dropped them.

He won.

“Best two out of three?” he asked.

We found two more sticks.

I won the second game.  Now it was a tie.  We played one more time.

The sticks came out from under the bridge at the same time.  We laughed.

“Oh well,” he said.

He pulled me close like we were dancing, which he does often if we are talking about random things and he is being cute.

“I love you,” he said.

“I love you.”

“You are my very best friend in the whole world.  I want to keep you forever.”

I smiled.

“Can I?” he asked.

I nodded as I watched him reach into his jacket pocket.  He knelt down on one knee.  He opened the little black box to reveal a perfect diamond ring.

“Will you marry – ”

“Yes!”  I didn’t quite let him finish.  He laughed.

“Will you?” he asked one more time.

“Yes.”  I laughed too.

He stood up and took me in his arms.  He spun me around.

He let me go to take the ring out of the box and place it on my finger.

“Do you like it?”

“I love it!  It’s perfect.”  We both looked at it.  It really was perfect.

Everything about this was perfect.

"It really was perfect."

Engagement Day: Aaron’s Story: Part Four

Patrick and I sat at the park.  He tried to do homework.  I tried to focus in on my teaching for kidzGIG.  Surprisingly, because my adrenaline was up so high, I read through the lesson once and had it memorized.  It usually takes me at least three times over the course of the week.  All the planning for this day kind of took over though, and so I had only read through it once.  I was quite pleased that it only took one read through to memorize it, so I could calm down a bit more, focus, and think about  what I was going to say.

“You haven’t thought about it yet?” Patrick had asked.

“I have…but…I don’t know.  It will be perfect.  I don’t think I can mess it up.  I mean, it’s the question.  How hard is it to ask a question?  Especially when you know what the answer will be.”

We sat and talked some more.  People walked by.  Lots of people.  I had the thought that I hadn’t had yet.  Why hadn’t I thought of it before?  What if there are people near the bridge, being loud, sitting on the rocks below, or skipping stones in the creek?  What if it was noisy and ruined the moment?  What if a bird pooped on our heads?  This, all of a sudden, was a stupid idea.

My phone rang.  It was Amanda

“She’s gone?”

“Yeah, she changed clothes and she’s on her way.”

“Changed clothes?”

“Yes, I told her that she would want to change clothes, that she was going to hike, and she would want tennis shoes.”

“Oh.  Okay…”

I thought to myself that maybe that was a bad idea.  I knew that Whitney would be wearing a skirt and a new t-shirt.  She had been excited about wearing it today before she knew what was going on.  The fact that I was sending her out to play a game only solidified the idea that she would wear that.  She would not have wanted to change.

“Oh and also,” Amanda continued, “I don’t think she has a clue what’s going on.”

What?

“She has to know by now.  It’s so obvious!  How could she not know?  She should have known as soon as she got out of the shower this morning, or at least by the time she left Meggan Hennebry.  The 19^th question – I mean…”

“Well if she knows, she’s really good at faking it.”

The call ended.  I told Patrick what was going on.

“Okay,”  I said, “when she gets here, she is going to want to change back into what she had on before.  Tell her she can if she wants to. And she’ll want to.”

I knew in my mind that Whitney would not want to see me in jeans and tennis shoes.  The only reason I told her to bring tennis shoes was just to clue her in, to have things come complete in circle.

We walked my stuff back to the car.  I had brought another shirt to wear, and a jacket to wear, even though it was 100 degrees outside.  You have to understand that I view myself from an objective perspective.  I like movies.  A lot.  So, I like things to be visually correct.  I think, “If we were in a movie right now, I would be wearing…” and go from there.  This is why I changed clothes. This is why I knew Whitney would want to change.  This is also why I stare at myself in mirrors if one is nearby.  People that know me at all know this about me well.

I changed my shirt and added a belt.  Patrick handed me the ring box.  I put it in my pocket.  An older woman in the parking lot had been watching all of this.  She smiled when she saw the ring.  She didn’t say it, but in her eyes I knew she was saying, “Congratulations!”

Now, it was time for the plan.  I would walk down the trail a little ways.  Patrick would meet Whitney.  He would take her keys to drive her car back to my house.  She would come down the trail.  She would find me.  We would walk, talk, and arrive at the bridge, play a game, and then…magic.

I started walking down the trail, leaving Patrick behind.  It was so hot. I was already sweating.  Also, the ring box was bulky.  It was like trying to hide a rock in my pocket.  In movies, they never show this part.  They never show the guy putting the ring in his pocket.  They only show him taking it out, like it magically appears.  That’s why I had to wear the jacket.  It was so humid.

The phone rang.  It was Karen.  Crap.  What happened?

“Hey.”

“Hey, Whitney just called, and she is very upset because Amanda made her change clothes…”

“I know.  I knew she wouldn’t want to.”

“She wants to know if she can change back, or did she need to change?”

“No, no.  It’s fine.  I already told Patrick to tell her if she wanted to change back, she could.  So, it will be fine.  She can change when she gets here.  If anything, it will just add more time, which is fine.”

Crisis averted.

Now, I would wait.  Patrick would call me when she started walking down the trail.  I was waiting at the first bridge.  It was about a five minute walk into the woods.

Patrick called.

“She’s walking down the trail.  Let me know when you see her.”

Earlier that day, Patrick had expressed concern that a prowler could be on the trail waiting for some lonely girl to walk through the woods to kidnap.  I guess I hadn’t thought of that.  Also, it was a simple short walk, on a Saturday, where lots of people are.  But, I guess that’s a valid point.

A family of hikers started walking towards where I was.  They were loud.  There was a ten year old ahead of them.  He saw me just standing there.  He thought I was going to steal him apparently because he stopped walking and froze.  He stared at me like I was a threat.  Awkward.  Then his family caught up.  They looked at me like I was a threat.  Then they all just stood on the bridge and kept talking.  I wanted to say, “Excuse me, but can you please keep walking.  I’m meeting my future fiancée here and I need everything to be perfect.  You’re destroying my Spielbergian vision for this scene!”  Maybe not Spielberg.  Probably more like a Nora Ephron flick.

Through the trees I saw Whitney.  I sent Patrick a quick text: “Got her.”

The family finally left just as Whitney came down the curve of the trail. Perfect.

I walked to the bridge and stood there.  She smiled when she saw me, but being the lady she is, avoided being overly dramatic, or overly excited to see me.  She didn’t shout, she didn’t run towards me.  She just kept walking like it was any other day.  She was collected, and calm.  She was doing exactly what I expected her to do.  Perfect girl.

She had changed clothes, just as I predicted.

We hugged, and a quick kiss.

“What have you done today?” I asked.

She began to tell me everything.  We walked for a while and I listened to every word, and laughed at my own cleverness.

One of my favorite books is Peter Pan.  Peter Pan delights in his own cleverness, you may remember.  I am the same way.  Perhaps that’s arrogant of me, and likely sinful.

We passed the family that was scared of me.  The wife in the group seemed to know what was going on now.  Women are perceptive like that.  I am so thankful God made them that way.  She would hold her family back for a while, giving us a good start down the path without the noise of her children following.  Perfect.

Whitney finished telling me her story.  She asked what I did all day.  My story is more boring, obviously.  It was a lot of waiting around and jumping up and down, and breaking out into nervous sweats, and eating nothing, and then eating, and then feeling queasy.  It was lame in comparison.  I didn’t say all of that.  I didn’t have to talk long anyway.  The bridge was in sight.

We continued walking.

“Okay, you’ve had a good day.  It’s only half over though.  We have another game to play.”

She knew of course.  We picked sticks.  It was a game from a “silly, old bear,” a Pooh bear.  We are suckers for kid stories, even in adulthood.

We tossed our sticks, and I was hoping I would win for once.  I did.

I thought, in my mind, maybe as she turned to the other side of the bridge, I would drop to my knee, and when she realized I wasn’t there, she would turn and find me with a ring in my hand.  No.  That would be lame.  I wouldn’t get to say anything that way.  I wanted to tell her that I loved her, and tell her she was my best friend, and that I wanted to be with her for the rest of our lives, and then ask if she wanted to be with me too.  I had to say that.

We picked sticks, and tossed again.  She won.  Now, we were tied.

“Once more.”

We tossed.  They came through at the same time.  But I wasn’t really paying attention.  I was looking around to make sure no one would interrupt this.  It would be awkward to have a runner come across the bridge.  It would ruin it.  But, we seemed to be in the clear.

I pulled her close and danced with her.  It is something I do often when we talk about things.  Usually, there is no music playing but I always hear it in my head.  It’s a pleasant way to talk to each other, to engage one’s full attention; she has mine, and I have hers.

I can’t remember word for word what I said.  She probably remembers better.  She has a superb memory.  Mine is faulty, and wired wrong.  It always has been.  I’ll likely go crazy one day.  I already am to some extent.

“I love you, a lot.  And I am glad that we are together.  You are my very best friend, and I want to be with you forever.” (It was something like that.)

It was a struggle to let her go, because I didn’t want to.  But, it’s difficult to kneel and dance at the same time, so I let her go.  I knelt down.  I pulled the ring out of my pocket.  Thought: what if I dropped it and it fell in the water below?  Crap.  No.  Stop thinking.  Stay focused.

I opened the box.

Remembering this is like in slow motion.  It only took a matter of seconds.  But, when I remember it, it’s slow.  It’s like a thousand pictures in my mind, filling countless photo albums.

“Will you marry-“

“Yes!”

I can’t even finish the question?

“Will you?!”

“Yes!”

I leapt up and hugged her.  I spun her around and kissed her.  Nervously, I took the ring and slipped it on her finger.

“Do you like it?”

“I love it!  It’s perfect!”

Some ladies were hiking and stood at the opposite end of the bridge.

“We couldn’t help but see what was going on.  Would you like us to take your picture?  We can email it to you later.”

Where did these two even come from?

They took our picture.  While they were taking our picture, we were still excited and started kissing again – and why not get a picture of us kissing?

"...and why not get a picture of us kissing?"

“Okay, okay.  I think we have enough now…” they said jokingly.  Maybe they didn’t want us to make out in front of them.  Why not?  We’re the cutest ever!

We thanked them, gave our email address, and said goodbye.

“I knew there was a reason I carried this big camera for 8 miles today, “ the photographer said.

We stayed a little while longer on the bridge.  I took a few pictures of us, as I always do, with my arm

When we arrived at the bridge, we were simply “boyfriend-girlfriend.” Now I had a fiancée.  I had just promised this woman that I would be with her for the rest of my life.  She had promised me the same.

I took the hand of my future wife and we began our journey.

"I took the hand of my future wife and we began our journey."

Engagement Day: Whitney’s Story: Part 6

On my way to Journey Church, I reflected on my day so far.  It still felt like a dream a little bit.  I looked at the GPS.  Fifteen minutes until I arrived.  That’s not so long.  I kept driving.  I was in a hurry, but I didn’t want a speeding ticket.

Would Aaron be there?  Maybe he would meet me at Journey and we would go somewhere together.  No, I guess I don’t think that’s what he would do…he probably won’t be at Journey.  But I am running out of people.  I already ran out before I met Renee.  She was bonus.

I turned on Departure Drive.  My heart started to beat faster.  Part of me did think he would be there.

But it was not his familiar, black Civic (Mr. Feeney).  It was instead a familiar burgundy Jeep.

What on earth was Amanda Ivey doing here?

You see, I had talked to Amanda just four days ago when I was in Tennessee.  She had informed me that she was going to the beach with her mom and sister on Friday.  They were going to spend the night, and they were going shopping on Saturday.  How is she here?

Everyone has tricked me.  I don’t mind.  They are all so good at this game.  Aaron must be so glad that he is winning.  He hates to lose.  I am always content to let him win.  I like when he is happy.

I parked next to the Jeep and went inside.

Amanda was leaning against the front desk waiting for me with a smile on her face.

“Hi, friend,” she said as she gave me a hug.

“Hi! How are you here? You’re supposed to be at the beach!”

“Well, your boyfriend called me a couple weeks ago and asked me what I was doing today.  I told him I was going to the beach.  He said, ‘No, you’re not.’  I said, ‘YES, I am.’  Then he said, ‘That Saturday is going to be a really special day for Whitney…you don’t want to go to the beach.’  I said, ‘Um, I’m going to the beach with my mom and sister, ok?’ He said, ‘You’re not listening…Saturday is going to be a REALLY SPECIAL DAY…you don’t want to miss it.’  And then I got what he was saying.  So there was no way I was going to the beach.”

I laughed.  I was so happy to see her.

Aaron had made this day so perfect.  I got to see a lot of my friends that I had not planned to see.  That is always a wonderful surprise.

And now I was standing with Amanda.  So this stop would be fun, guaranteed.

“So then, what are we doing?” I asked.

She led me back to the Kidz GIG Studio and picked up two envelopes.

She opened one of them and read it to me:

Whitney, your challenge is to find 6 letters hidden in the bag and baby bin.

They are written on strips of colored cardstock like this one. (Amanda held up a hot pink strip of paper)

I can’t help you. Sorry.

Once you find them all, you’ll have to play a game…

I glanced toward the stage.  Sure enough, there were my two most dreaded bins from the supply closet.  Can I take just a moment to explain?

Almost every week our preschoolers need baby dolls for something in their activities.  I love baby dolls, so I understand.  But we have accumulated about 50 baby dolls now.  And that means that almost every week I am trying to cram all of those baby dolls and their blankets and their bottles back into that bin.  The lid will hardly close.  There little eyes stare at me.  “Why are you suffocating us in here?!”

And every, single week I take the lid off that Ziploc bag bin even though I know I will regret it.  If you work in Journey Kidz, you know that all of your activities for the week come nicely pre-packaged in a Ziploc bag.  Now, you might think to yourself, “Oh, they must spend a lot of money on Ziploc bags every week.”  Well, you’re mistaken.  I’m sure we spent a lot of money on bags once upon a time, but now, we literally have about 500 of them.  And we don’t throw them away unless they are severely mangled.  So, every week, when I empty out the rooms from the weekend before, I make a giant mountain of Ziploc bags.  Then, I go into the closet and reach to the very top shelf to get down the awful bin that is already bursting open with plastic and zippers sticking out around the lid.  I take it in the Studio, and I say to Aaron, “I don’t think they will fit this week.”  Every week he says, “Sure they will!” as he types away at his computer.  He will help me if I ask him, but I usually don’t.  I then take the bin up to the mountain of bags that need to go back in and hesitantly remove the lid.  The bags look like they breathe in a nice breath of fresh air because they have been holding their breath to fit into a space that’s too small for them.  Some of them try to jump out.  I start gathering up the bags on the floor with one hand as I hold the other ones in the bin so they don’t fall to the floor.  Are you picturing this with me?  I always feel like the bags are fighting me.  They hate going into the bin.  When I think I have them all under control, I pick up the lid as I use my knee and my other hand to hold the bags down.  I quickly put it on, and there are always some that try to escape.  I stuff them under the edge, and use my knees and my hands to push the lid down enough to where I can snap the ends closed.  The lid is not even on all the way, but I have conquered the bags for another week.  This is why I hate the bag bin.  Do you understand?

So, back to the story then.  I looked at Amanda and said, “Of course that’s what I have to do.  I hate those bins.”  She was bursting with glee knowing that she could watch me and not help at all.

I moved to the stage.  “Let’s get started then.”

I looked between the two bins.  The baby dolls looked less threatening.  I decided to begin with them.  I took off the lid and started taking baby dolls out.

I was not seeing any strips of colored paper.

I got to the bottom.  “I don’t see any.  Did he seriously put them all in the bags and just make me look through the babies for nothing?”

Amanda was laughing, snapping pictures, and having a grand old time watching me do this.  “Maybe you aren’t looking close enough.”

“He didn’t put them in the clothes, did he?!”

She laughed.  Dang it.  He did.

"Maybe you aren't looking close enough."

I started to pick the baby dolls up again and feel inside their clothes as I put them back in the bin.  I might as well clean up as I searched this time.

“You never thought you would have to feel up baby dolls, did you?”  Amanda was enjoying this way too much.

Found one!

I felt under more clothes.

Found two!

But now I was getting down to the last few dolls.  And I came up empty.

“He must have put four in the bag bin.”  I concluded.  Amanda wouldn’t give me any clues.

I moved over to the Ziploc bags.  I hate them.  I took off the lid.  At least the papers would be easy to see because bags are clear.

I started taking them out.  I found three fairly easily.  And my one consolation was at least Aaron had to take them all out and put them all back when he hid them.

"I moved over to the Ziploc bags. I hate them."

Now, I love math, so I knew that I had found three in the bags and two in the babies.  That’s five.  There are six.  I have missed one.  Crap.

Even though I knew the answer, I said it anyway.  “If I have gone through all of those babies twice and still missed one, I am going to be very upset!”

Amanda laughed.  I laughed too.  Back to the babies.

I took them all out again, and came up with nothing.  He must have put it in a blanket.

Sure enough, the very last blanket I came too had a piece of paper in it.  Finally.

I collected up my six treasures and carried them to the back table.  I had now figured out what game I would have to play.

“I’m playing, Word Warp, right?”

“You’re right!” Amanda said.

Word Warp is a game on Aaron’s iPhone.  We play it together if we are sitting somewhere waiting with nothing to do.  The game goes like this:  You have six random letters that form a six-letter word and the letters also form a certain number of three to five-letter words.  Your goal is to figure out the six-letter word and as many other three to five-letter words that you can within a time limit.  It’s fun.  It hurts your brain after awhile.

Amanda took out another envelope and opened it.  She read it to me.

So, now we are going to play WORD WARP with the letters you found.

You’re good at this game, it’s true.

You have six letters. You must make as many words as I have made with these six letters.

So, make words of 3 letters, 4 letters, 5 letters, and of course the 6 letter word.

Once you get all the ones that I have on my list, you’ll get your next clue.

If you come up with a word that’s not on my list, then that will substitute for one you didn’t get on my list.

Okay, ready?!

I put the letters in a row on the table.  They were the letters I, R, D, B, G, and E.

Here goes.

"Here goes."

I came up with big, rib, bed, red, grid, and bride (which was not on Aaron’s list, interestingly enough.)

I kept going.  Amanda would not help me at all.  I finally got all of the words on Aaron’s list except three, and I had come up with seven that he didn’t.  I could not think of the six-letter word for the life of me.

I had been writing the words I thought of on a white board, and Amanda had been crossing them off of Aaron’s list.  I asked for a hint.  She said no.  I said, “At least tell me how many letters the other words have! Word Warp does that at least!”

She gave in and said one word had five letters, and the other one did not even look like a real word to her.

I stared at the letters and came up blank.  I decided I needed to look at them in a different way.  I wrote them out on the white board.

Almost instantly, it came to me.  “BRIDGE!!!”

Yay!  It was so obvious.  You see, I love bridges.  I don’t know why.  I just do.  And Aaron knows that.  He is extremely clever if I haven’t said so.

And after I got “bridge,” it was clear that the other word was “ridge.”

I won the game.  I was excited.

Amanda went to the bin that sits on the back table of the Studio.  She opened it and pulled out Aaron’s GPS.  It is in a case.  She handed it to me.  I opened the case to find an orange piece of paper and a white piece of paper.  The orange paper said:

Hit “Favorites”

Go to “Attractions”

You know the park…

🙂

The white piece of paper was a map of William B. Umstead State Park.

Aaron and I went to William B. Umstead State Park for the first time the day after Christmas.  It was an unusually warm day, and we were not dressed for hiking at all.  But we somehow ended up there, and we walked the trails for about two hours.  We talked a lot, and we would stop on the bridges because I liked them.  It was right after he had first kissed me, so I was still getting used to that.  I decided I really liked kissing him that day.  I remember he told me he liked my hair when I wore it down.  He said a lot of sweet things that day.  He also asked me what I liked about him.  I remember thinking, “I’m pretty sure I love him.”

That was a good day.  We have been back since then.  I knew that he was there now.  That’s where I would meet him.  On a bridge.  I am certain.  Now that I know this, I am ready to leave.

It was 1:00.  “Do you think I should change?”

“Probably.”

I didn’t want to change.  I really liked my outfit.  Remember what I said earlier.  About the t-shirt?  And you have seen the pictures so far, right?  Isn’t my outfit cute?  But, do you also remember the video?  He said, “You may want some tennis shoes and some casual clothes…”  Obviously he was referring to now…that I might want those for the park.  Was he serious?  Were we going on a major hike or what?

“I don’t know.  Do we have time to talk now?  When can I leave?” I was a little impatient.

I realize now that I sounded a little rude and in a hurry to leave my wonderful friend.  I didn’t mean that I didn’t want to talk to her.  I was so focused on getting to the park.  Getting to Aaron.  I could hardly wait to see him.  The game was almost over.  And I had a feeling we would both win this time.

Amanda said we should clean up the mess on the stage and then I could change.  By the time we were done with those things, I could probably leave.

We started picking up the bags and the babies.  “I really don’t want to change.  Do you think I need tennis shoes?”

“Well, you don’t want to hike in a park with your flip flops, right?” she replied.

“I guess not.  I can’t wear tennis shoes with a skirt though.  And the only other thing I brought was jeans and a black tank top.  It’s really hot outside.  I don’t want to wear jeans.”

“I’m wearing jeans.  It’s fine.  You don’t want to wear a skirt to walk around in the woods.”

I guess she was right, but I really didn’t want to change.  I agreed though.  If I was going to have to walk a long time, she was right.  This probably wasn’t the best choice of outfit.

We took a picture together before we left the Studio.

whitney and Amanda

I went out to the car to get my bag.  I changed in the bathroom while she sat outside the stall.  I came out with the jeans and black tank top.

“Are you sure this looks ok?”  I was not convinced.  I already hated this idea.  But I couldn’t change back now.  I needed to leave.

“It looks good.”

“Ok.”  I brushed my hair and tied my shoes.

Amanda walked me to the door.

“I guess I’ll see you later…tomorrow, right?” I said, as I gave her a hug.  I thanked her for skipping the beach to be here.  It meant a lot to me.  She is a priceless friend.

She said she would see me later.

I got in my car and turned on the GPS.  It had no idea where it was.  I told it to take me to the park and waited for it to figure out that it was at Journey.  I decided I would start driving while I waited.  I turned onto Oak Forest from the parking lot and headed towards Capital.  I stopped at the light and fidgeted with the GPS until the light turned green.  It was starting to get on my nerves.  “Stop re-calculating!!”

My phone rang.  My heart skipped a beat.  I picked it up.

Lance Fletcher?

What in the world?!

“Hello?”

“Hey, I was just right beside you at the light! I was waving, but you didn’t see me.”

“Oh! Sorry! I’m a little distracted. I’m on a scavenger hunt…it’s a little hard to explain. How are you?”

I can’t remember what he said.  I hung up after I told him I would see him on Sunday.  How random…

The GPS finally got its act together.  I would arrive at the park by 1:50pm.  I was still freaking out about my outfit.  I decided to call my mom.  Maybe she would calm me down.

What am I even doing?  I don’t know, but I’m excited…

Engagement Day: Whitney’s Story: Part Five

It was easier to find parking in Moore Square, but I still had to parallel park.  Renee called just as I was pulling in a spot.  I hit ignore.  She called again.  I didn’t answer.  Once I made it in the spot I decided it would be nice of me to call her back.  Otherwise she wouldn’t hear from me until after lunch or later.  I had no idea what I would be doing next.

I called her.  She asked me what had happened since the last time I talked to her and where I was.  I told her all about it, and I told her I was at lunch now.  I had to meet someone at an Italian restaurant that Aaron and I like.  I hung up.

I wondered who would meet me for lunch.  I had no idea at all.  For a minute I wondered if Dave and Lisa, Aaron’s parents, would meet me.  That would be nice.  Maybe it would be them.  The last time Aaron and I were here, we were with his best friend Chad the night before he went back home to Texas.  Chad would not be here, he is not in the country right now.  I gave up trying to guess.

I walked through an alley and down the sidewalk to Vic’s Italian Restaurant.  No one was waiting outside.  I opened the door and stepped in.  My eyes scanned the room, but they landed on empty tables and chairs.  The hostess asked me if I was ready to be seated.

“No, I’m actually waiting on someone…I’m not sure who they are.  I’ll just wait outside if that’s ok.”  That probably sounded strange to her.  Maybe she thinks I am on a blind date.  I have never been on a blind date.  I have only been out on a date with one guy in the whole world.  And he is waiting for me somewhere right now.  But probably not here.

I went back outside and sat at a table.  I glanced up and down the street.  No one I knew was coming.  I looked at my watch.  It was 11:20am.

I decided to call my mom.  I gave her an update.  “I’m here at the restaurant now.  I’m pretty positive that I’m in the right place, but there is no one here yet.  I have no idea who I’m meeting.”

My mom said that I was indeed in the right place.  (See, I knew that she knew what was going on.)

Just then, my best friend Renee walked around the corner.  The same best friend I had been talking to all morning.  I was so surprised to see her.  She would be the last person I would think of to meet me here.  Aaron has only met her two times.  How did he even get in touch with her?  That also means she has been faking shock all morning.  She knew all along.  She is a good actress, apparently, because I had no idea.

We laughed before we said anything to each other.  That’s what we do.  We knew what we were both thinking.  I gave her a hug.

We went inside and sat down.  There were menus.  Right, it was lunch time.  I had to eat.  Food did not sound appetizing, which made me a little sad, because this Italian restaurant has a pasta dish that I get every time.  I don’t know what it’s called.  One time, the waitress told me it was their specialty.  It’s really good.  I asked Renee if she wanted to split that with me.  I wasn’t very hungry.

She agreed.

After the waiter left to place our order, we talked all about my day.  She told me how Aaron had called her and asked her if she could help him out today.  She told me how she was stressing out that morning because she didn’t want to lie to me.  She also told me that she had just talked to Aaron, and he told her she should keep me for an hour.  “Talk about anything,” he had said.

An hour.  That’s a long time.  I thought to myself that I’m glad Renee is here.  She will understand how an hour seems like an eternity for me.  And it doesn’t help that Renee and I get bored easily.  I remember last spring Renee and I were supposed to go to the beach for one night when we were on Spring Break.  I told Aaron I would be gone for basically 24 hours.  He asked why in the world we would not stay for two nights and spend time at the beach.  I had to inform him that we would be done doing everything we wanted to do and ready to come home after one night.  Neither of us would have any desire to stay longer. It’s not that we don’t like spending time together or we don’t have fun.  It is just how we have always been.  So, right now, we both knew that it was 11:30am and we would be done eating before noon.  Then what?

Renee had a big manila envelope with her.  I figured it was something from Aaron.  I wondered when he had given it to her.  Was he right around the corner just a little while ago?  Had I been that close to him?

Renee handed it to me.  “This is actually from me, not Aaron,” she said.  The envelope said, “Open at 8:37pm.  Do NOT open before!”  Renee went on to explain:  “The time is random.  Just open it tonight.  I don’t want to ruin any of Aaron’s plans, so don’t open it too soon.”

I took it from her.  I wonder what plans she is referring to.  She obviously knows what Aaron is doing.  I think I know too.  But I won’t think about that.

We talked about school and her boyfriend, Derrick.  Her birthday was on Thursday.  She didn’t know if she wanted a party or not.  She’s like me, she doesn’t like parties.  We don’t like being the center of attention.

Our food came.  I didn’t want to eat, but I knew that I should.  I put some on my plate.  I think I ate about seven bites.  I couldn’t eat anymore.  Renee asked if I wanted to take it home with me.

“No, that’s ok.  You take it.”

It was 11:50am.  Forty more minutes.

I suggested that we walk around.  We could go to the ArtSpace.  That would kill time.

Renee went to the restroom, and when she got back we asked a lady to take our picture together.

"I was so surprised to see her..."

Then Renee took my picture with Vic.  And his cigar.

"Vic and his cigar..."

I offered to pay for lunch with Aaron’s money, but Renee took care of it.  She’s the best.  We left.

“Let’s take the leftovers to your car so you don’t have to hold them the whole time.”

“I’m fine.  Besides, I don’t really remember where I parked,” she replied.

I laughed.  “Well, we should find it.  We have a lot of time anyway.  I want to help you find it so I know you aren’t wandering around looking for your car later.”

She agreed, and we set off to the parking garage.  When we got there, it did not look familiar to her.  We went to another parking garage.  That one did not look familiar either.

“Wait, maybe it was the other one.”

I laughed.  I love Renee.  We went back to the other one.  That one was correct all along.  We put the pasta in her car and kept walking.  It was now 12:05pm.

I took her to the ArtSpace.  She had never been.  That was one of the first places that Aaron ever took me.  The Friday after he asked me out (November 7^th), we decided to hang out for the afternoon.  I met him at his house and we went downtown.  He took me to lunch at the Carolina Café, and then we walked.  We walked for a long time.  (If you can’t tell by now, we really like to walk downtown together).  We went to a lot of different restaurants and took menus to see what we might like.  We went to the Raleigh City Museum and met a guy who swore his father was in one of the posters on the wall.  Aaron told me about when he worked for the Episcopal Church.  He told me he used to walk around town when he worked there.  And he took me to the ArtSpace.  He showed me his favorite artist.  I wanted him to hold my hand that day.  He didn’t.

Renee and I looked around.  I showed her Aaron’s favorite artist.  I said I would love to buy him a piece of art, but I could only afford about a 4-inch canvas painting…lame.

Now I had to use the restroom.  I went (while Renee secretly called my boyfriend, I now know).

Afterwards, we decided to walk back towards my car.  We still had fifteen minutes to kill until 12:30.

We got back to the sidewalk with the Italian restaurant, and we went in another art gallery.  It had strange art.  I’m sure the artists are all very talented and wonderful.  Some art is just weird.  That’s all.

I was running out of ways to distract myself when my phone beeped, informing me that I had a text message.

Having a good day? Almost there. But first take a Journey to 5808 Departure Drive. I love you! 😉

It was a number I did not recognize.  I realized now that Aaron was using someone else’s phone.  That makes sense.  How else would he know what was going on?  This also means that all I have to do is type something back or call this number and I could be communicating with him.  I had not known that was possible all day.  But instead of worrying that I could not get in touch with him, I was surprisingly fine with him not having a phone for the first time since I found out.

I didn’t reply.  I didn’t have anything to say to him.  No questions.  “Having a good day?” seemed like a rhetorical question to me.  I was content to move on to my next stop.  He said I was almost there.  Almost done.  Almost to him.  I could hardly wait.  Let’s get out of here.

I showed Renee the message and said goodbye.  I promised I would wait to open her envelope, and I thanked her for being there and for being my best friend.  I would call her later.

I went to my car, punched in 5808 Departure Drive in the GPS, and I was on my way.

Engagement Day: Whitney’s Story: Part Four

I would have to parallel park.  Crap.  Who will be in the glass box?  No one even knows what it is.  It’s so random.  How would he have explained it to someone?  Would he be there?  No, surely the game isn’t over yet.  He would not propose to me in a stupid glass box.  I mean, if that’s even what he’s doing today.

It took me two trips around the block to find a parking spot on the street.  I literally backed up and pulled forward ten times to get in the spot.  People honked.  I felt bad.  I am so bad at parallel parking.  Finally, I got out and started walking to the box.

I came around the corner and saw someone there.  They weren’t looking at first, and then they looked up.  It was Joel Odom.  Joel and I went to elementary, middle, and high school together.  We have been good friends for a long time, and now he comes to Journey and we are in small group together.  I wouldn’t have guessed he would be here, just like I wouldn’t have guessed Meggan Hennebry.  But now, it was obvious.  Aaron is such a genius.  I smiled and waved to Joel.

A guy in a car was stopped at a light next to me.  He said, “Oh, I thought that guy was waving to me.  And I was like, who in the heck is that?  I don’t know who that is.”

I looked at him.  He was distracting me from my scavenger hunt.  “Oh, sorry.”  I kept going.  Weird.

Joel opened the door for me and pushed the elevator button.  I gave him a hug as the doors opened.  We stepped in and he pushed the button for “P1.”

“So, how’s your day been?” he asked.

I gave him the same story I gave Meggan, adding the Starbucks part.

He asked about the parking garage.  I told him.  (Read Aaron’s post if you want to know).

We got to the bottom floor and I stepped off, heading right where I knew the gum would be.

“Do you know where the gum is?” he asked.

“Yes.”  I know exactly where that gum is at.  I know it’s weird, but that parking garage is one of my favorite places downtown.  It was one of my first dates with Aaron, and it was a perfect night.  We didn’t do anything extravagant or spend a lot of money.  We walked.  A lot.  We talked about everything and anything.  I had butterflies in my stomach that night too.  I remember that he held my hand only after he asked me if he could.  And it was perfect.  I will never forget it.

When we got to the pillar, I told Joel to take my picture like Aaron’s picture from New Year’s Eve.

"Do you know where the gum is?"

Then I showed him the gum.  It was still there, and there was something new next to it.  It was a green envelope that said, “i am soooooo. hungry. where to now?”  On the back it said, “Don’t get a parking ticket!”

"I know exactly where that gum is at."

I opened it up and there was a long, handwritten note from Aaron.  I read it to myself.  It was probably awkward for Joel to stand there.  I could have read it out loud, but I wasn’t really reading it carefully.  I was skimming it, getting the gist.  I just wanted to find my next stop.  I didn’t realize it was a poem at the time, but now I do.

(Now I know that Aaron actually wrote me a poem.  It makes so much more sense now.)

I know of a place not far from here

Where people sit, some have a beard

And they talk all day about silly things

Like Ross Perot, mountain-folk and diamond….. (hmm…)

 

Once people spoke of being dressed to the nines

Or was it ten? Can’t remember – I’ve lost my mind.

By now you know the place, of this I am certain.

If not, I can’t help you! Something something curtain.

 

Oh my! My margins are horrible, terrible, Aren’t they?

Don’t forget your monies – you’ll probably have to pay.

And did I mention a friend is there to greet you?

It’s true, but think about it. You’ll never guess who!

 

Well you might, and that’s fine, that’s okay as long as

You take a picture of a portrait of a man who has

Built an empire with cigar in hand, making pasta you like

And other bread Italian things (something ends bike).

 

Okay – nearly done – I hope you know how to go

It’s not far you remember? Take your time – be slow!

It’s that place in the square, near the IMAX screen

A happening place, a place where you can be seen!

 

His name is VIC not VINNY, so don’t get confused!

 

Joel can help you find it, map it on his tech tools.

 

I LOVE YOU! 🙂  –ajb–

After I finished Joel asked me if I knew where to go.  It was clear to me that I was supposed to go to Vic’s Italian Restaurant in Moore Square.  Aaron took me there for the first time on December 5, 2008.  It was First Friday downtown.  We went to the Art Space after we ate.  Aaron got a parking ticket.  It was a good night (besides the parking ticket).  We have been back a couple times since then.

“Yes, I know where to go.  I just have to find it.”  I asked him which road I should turn on.  He said Hargett Street.

Joel and I took a picture when we got back up to the glass box.  He forgot to zoom out at first.  The next one was better.

Inside the Glass Box

“You’re not coming to lunch?” I asked.

He wasn’t.  He walked me to my car and told me to have a good day.  I said I would see him tomorrow.

I drove off by myself.

Engagement Day: Aaron’s Story: Part Three

I ran inside my house and went to the bathroom.  Finally.

My roommates told me what happened, how she had come in, how they greeted her, how she won at SORRY!  I knew she would.   It was also a great surprise to Patrick that she knew exactly which movie to go to in finding her next clue.  We had discussed many times how much I loved “Lawrence of Arabia”.  It’s one of my favorites, and we many times sat down to watch it – only it’s 4 hours long and it seems at times an overwhelming task.

Now was the hard part.  I would have to wait all day to receive updates of where she was, when she was going to her next stop.  It wasn’t enough that my nerves were already shot from two hours of sleep.  My stomach began to make the rest of me feel nauseated.  There was no way I would be able to eat much of anything for the rest of the day. (I hadn’t eaten at all save for the two cups of coffee.)

My roommates occupied my time by forcing me to play Mario Kart on the Wii.  I lost every round.  Let’s face it.  I was distracted by other things.

Whenever I got an update, I would literally jump up and down in the living room, excited, elated, and anxious for what was next.

There wasn’t much else to do.  I sat and waited there.  I sat there until 11:30 when I knew she would be at lunch.  Patrick and I left to go to Harrison Avenue to wait for the final call that she was on her way.  We stopped at Chic-fil-A to eat something.  As soon as I ate it, I knew it was a mistake to have eaten.  It made me feel queasy and slow.

The call came at 12:15 that she was ready to go to Journey, her final stop before seeing me.  At 12:30 I sent Whitney a text:

“Are you having a good day? Almost done.  But first take a Journey to 5808 Departure Drive.  I love you. ”

She didn’t respond.  I freaked out.  Did she get it?

I called Renee. She said Whitney had just left.  I was surprised she didn’t respond to me.  She hadn’t talked to me or heard from me since 8:00 that morning.  Wasn’t she dying to talk to me?  Was she annoyed?  Was she in such a hurry that she just wanted to see me and not make small texting chit-chat?

Only 90 minutes or so until I would see her. Only.

It seems short.

It was an eternity.

Engagement Day: Whitney’s Story: Part Three

While I was driving out of Aaron’s neighborhood, I checked my phone.  Renee had called back, but I couldn’t answer as I was playing an intense game of SORRY!  I called her again, and she answered this time.

I can’t really remember our conversation that well.  I remember she asked me if Aaron had ever done anything like this before.

“No.”

“Well, maybe it’s just a scavenger hunt.”

“Maybe.”

I didn’t think so. But maybe.

“Do you think he’s going to propose?”

“I don’t know.  Well, it will be a good day no matter what.  Even if he…even if that isn’t what it is.”  (I didn’t bring myself to say the words “propose,” “engaged,” or any other similar words all day. Remember, I’m not getting my hopes up.)

Renee and I talked a little more.

“Hey, I’m getting into downtown so I’m going to go.  I hate driving downtown,” I said.

“Well, call me back and tell me what happens! This is so exciting!”

“I will.”  I hung up.  I was almost to the Starbucks.  How did I not get that clue right away?  I was just as nervous now as I was last time I was here ten months ago.  (I know Aaron told that story, so I won’t bore you with it again.)

Who would meet me here?  I had no idea.  For a second I wondered if it would just be some random Starbucks person.  That would be awkward.  I don’t want to look like an idiot in there.  “Excuse me, I’m on a scavenger hunt. Do you know anything about what I’m supposed to do?”

I was very anxious as I got out of my car. Oh, right, don’t forget the camera. And take the keys out of the ignition. And my phone. Maybe Aaron will call…no, his phone is broken.

I walked to the door and opened it.  I stepped inside and my eyes scanned the room until they landed on a familiar, smiling face.

Meggan Hennebry.  I was so happy to see someone I knew.  Not only is Meggan in our small group and a good friend to me and Aaron, she is actually the first person, besides our parents and Renee, to know that Aaron and I were dating.  We had basically just met her a month before when she started attending Journey NW.  Aaron asked me out on a Sunday night (November 2, 2008), and I believe it was the following Saturday that Meggan asked me (out of nowhere) if there was anything going on between us.  We hadn’t told anyone at Journey.  How in the world did she know?  Apparently, Meggan is very intuitive.  We have come to find that out.  She is a great friend.

She greeted me with a hug.  “Hi! How’s your day?”

How was my day?

“Good.” I smiled.  That was not an accurate description of this day.  That was a major understatement.  It would have to do.  I didn’t know what else to say.  “Good” sounded lame.

“What have you done so far?” she asked.

Assuming that she really didn’t know, I told her a brief synopsis of my morning.  “And now I’m with you.”

She moved to the counter.  I followed her.

“You have to order.  And it has to be something hot,” she said.

Of course.  He knows I don’t like hot coffee.  The taste of coffee is fine.  It’s the heat.  It makes me nervous.  I don’t want it to burn my mouth.  I’m weird.

I didn’t complain though. “Ok.”

Meggan ordered first.  She handed the person behind the counter her money.

Money! Dang it! “I left my money in the car. I’m sorry. My head is everywhere and I forgot. I’ll go get it.”

“Don’t worry about it. What do you want?”  (Thanks, Meggan 🙂 )

I ordered a White Chocolate Mocha.  Aaron orders that sometimes.  I liked it.

We waited for our drinks and sat down at a table.  (It was not the table that Aaron and I sat at, but it was close! It was the one right behind it!)

Meggan started going through her purse.  I was watching her closely.  The butterflies in my stomach didn’t appreciate the coffee.  What did Aaron have for me next?  Meggan pulled out two envelopes.  She read the front of both of them and put one back.  The one she kept in her hand said “Open at 10:00am.”  I glanced at my watch. It was 10:02.

“We are going to play 20 questions,” Meggan said.

20 questions. Ok. Good. I can do that. If I had to ask 20 questions, I would kill him. But I could definitely answer them. Or try to.

Number one:  Our first talking date here was what day?

“November 2^nd.”  I knew that without thinking.  Meggan was surprised.

Number two:  What is my earliest memory of you?

We had just talked about this a little while ago.  I told Aaron I remembered him from church when we were younger.  I remember he would do drama-type things.  I remember that I never even said one word to him as far as I know.

He told me that he remembers coming to my house to take piano lessons from my mom.  One day I walked downstairs for something.  He remembers that.

Number six:  What is highly disputed about our first kiss?

Aaron kissed me in the middle of December.  I can’t think of the date right now.  One night he walked me to my car.  He hugged me goodbye.  Then he looked at me.  Then he kissed me.  It took me by surprise.  I was sure I was horrible at it.

His side of the story is that I was practically begging him to kiss me.  He wanted to wait until New Year’s Eve but I wanted him soooo bad.  Something in my eyes…whatever. 🙂

There were a lot more questions.  The last four went like this:

Number 16:  Are you having a good day so far?

“Yes.”

Number 17:  Where do you think you will be sent to next?

“I have no idea.”

Number 18:  Where do you think you’ll end up?

“Somewhere with Aaron, hopefully.”

Number 19:  This is the last question.  What do you think the twentieth question will be?

Isn’t he clever?  I didn’t say anything.

Ok, we played the game.  I was ready to go.  I started drinking my coffee really fast.  I didn’t care so much that it was hot.

“Slow down there,” Meggan said.  “You have to stay here until 10:40am.  We have 30 more minutes.”

Dang it.  Not that I didn’t want to talk to Meggan.  My mind was just a little preoccupied.  At least she was there to distract me.  We talked about her job, my school, my trip to Tennessee.  Finally it was 10:38.

“Don’t tell him I cheated.”  She gave me the envelope.

I opened it and pulled out a piece of computer paper.  On it was a picture of Aaron.  A familiar picture.

P1 - remember?

And these words:

Go to the glass box

Meet a friend.

May I have a piece of gum?

“Do you know where to go?” asked Meggan.

“Yes.”

I think we talked a little bit more.  I asked her if she was coming with me.  No, she had other things to do.  I left after we took a picture together.

10:38am - "Don't tell him I cheated."

I got in my car to drive across town to the Raleigh Convention Center and the Marriott Hotel.

Engagement Day: Aaron’s Story: Part Two

I get in my car and drive away from Whitney’s house and it hits me.

I’m going to propose today.  I haven’t been dating this woman for a year yet, and I’m going to ask her to spend the rest of her life with me, and my quirks, and my constant ADD.  And, she’s going to say yes.  That thought alone, the knowing with 100% certainty that she was going to say yes drove me.  This wasn’t arrogance on my part, understand.  This was confidence in her, in us, that we love each other.  I know, because she told me.  I know because she has shown me.

I called my mom.  I had to talk to someone.  My best friend, Chad, was in a different country right now, so no way I’m getting in touch with him.  Besides, my mom and I often balance each other out.  When I’m freaking out, she remains calm.  When she freaks out, I can be a voice that makes sense.  I like my mom.  She answers the phone and says she’s been crying, a happy cry, but crying anyway.  My mom doesn’t usually cry over stuff like this.  But then again, this is kind of a first when she knows in advance what is about to happen.  We talk for a while.  Honestly, this conversation is a blur to me, which is sad.  I know it was a fun conversation; I know we laughed a lot.

I drove downtown to duct tape an envelope to a parking garage pillar.  This sounds odd, right?  Some back story is necessary.  You see, underneath the Marriott downtown, across from the convention center is an underground parking garage.  On one of our early dates, we took a long walk.  I love walking the city and wanted to share that with her.  Anyway, we went down into this parking garage which was completely empty and echoed a lot.  Odd, I know, but it would be a fun place to roller blade or play laser tag.  A few months later, on December 31^st, 2008, we went back with some friends.  I stuck a piece of gum on a pillar there.  Every now and then, we go back and look at it.  Odd, I know.  To us, it makes perfect sense.

I walk into the parking garage, empty as always, with a roll of duct tape and an envelope. In my mind, I imagine security guards thinking it’s an explosive I’m taping to a pillar there or some such nonsense.  I imagine them rushing in with guns to question me.  That doesn’t happen.  Instead, I leave it there, and drive away to Starbucks on Peace Street.

This Starbucks was unique because it was here on November 2^nd, 2008, that we talked seriously for the first time about dating each other.  Actually, I guess I am the one that talked.  She was a little surprised about my recent interest in her.  We had known each other for a long time, but it would be a stretch to classify us as “good friends”.  More or less, we knew of each other’s existence, and exchanged general good natured chats from time to time.  That’s the way it was for nearly two years.  But that summer things had changed.  And dating her would be a good idea.

I walked into the Starbucks and ordered a mocha or something.  I really didn’t care for the coffee, but wanted to be respectful of the business so I could leave something behind.

“I have a favor.  You see, I’m proposing to my girlfriend today, and she’s going on a scavenger hunt.  A friend of ours will be here in about 30 minutes to pick up these two envelopes.  I was wondering, if you could give them to her?”

She looks at me.  I am a little taken back that her face lacks the expression of surprise, as if people did this all the time, as if engagement-scavenger-hunts were routine at this Starbucks, and this was just another ho-hum-minimum-wage-with-benefits day.

“Wow.  That’s creative, “she says.  Okay.  So maybe this is unique after all.

“What’s your name?” I ask.

“Ejay” is what I hear.  Maybe she said, “AJ”.  I still don’t know.  There were loud espresso machines at work.

“Well, thanks.”

I took a moment before I left to imagine Whitney walking in the door, and seeing Meggan Hennebry.  In my mind, I pictured them at the very table where we sat ten months ago, as if by instinct, that’s where they would end up.  Meggan Hennebry was on her way.  She would be early in fact.  That was a relief.

The only problem is it’s not even 9am yet.  It is likely Whitney has not even left her house and I’m three steps ahead.

I drive around Raleigh and end up in Garner, in the back roads of Garner.  I see a yard sale.  I see a family walking around.  I pull over and call my mom again.  We talk some more.  I can’t remember what about. I think I needed dad’s iTunes password to put Facebook on his phone so I could immediately upload a picture of the ring on her finger the moment she said yes.  Thanks to social media, engagement announcements are instant.  Like microwavable oatmeal.

Not knowing if Whitney had even left her house yet was driving me crazy.  I sent Karen a text message: “Has the princess left yet?”  Princess is what I call Whitney sometimes.  That’s a long story.

“She just left.”  Then Karen calls thinking I’m my dad.  I’m not.  We talk.  Whitney hasn’t a clue what’s happening but she’s enjoying it.  She left around 8:45.

I drove around some more and end up in front of Walmart.  I don’t like Walmart.  It’s one of those places I try to avoid until my bank account whispers, “Save money.  Go to Walmart.”

Instead I drive to Staples.  I figure that if I can surround myself with stuff I don’t need, want, or can afford then my mind might wander long enough to pass the time.  I have to pee really bad.  My house is only one minute away, but Whitney is there.  I have to wait.

Joel Odom is notorious for being late in a good natured way. He argues with time.  I worry that he will be late for his role today.  He’s confused about this “Glass Box” location and wonders if Whitney will even have a clue where the gum is in the garage.

“She’ll know exactly where it is.”

I tell him that I am worried someone saw me walk in with duct tape and think I planted a bomb.  I worry they ripped my envelope off the pillar and scraped my 8 month old gum away.

“I’m getting there early.  I’ll check.” Joel has a “calm down; it is okay” tone in his voice.  It is much appreciated.

I wait at Staples some more.  I have to pee even more now.

My phone rings.  It’s Patrick.

“She just left.”  Perfect.  Right on time.  It’s 9:50.

I send a text to Meggan Hennebry, who is in place: “She’s on her way.”

Now I can go home and hide for a while.  And pee.