Cinematic Romance (and All That Mushy Stuff)

Thomas and I are celebrating our fourth (really?) wedding anniversary today. Last night, while we watched a Rocky retrospective (we're nothing if not exciting), we both noticed that, without meaning to, Thomas proposed to me with almost the same wording as when Rocky told Adrian he was "wondering if [she] wouldn't mind marrying" him. And we both cracked up. That may very well be the greatest marriage proposal ever put on film, by the way. It's certainly my favorite, and not just because it mirrors my own.

Anyway, mine was a surprise proposal. Well, it was a surprise to me. I think everyone else on the planet knew, including my mother, who normally couldn't keep a secret THAT BIG from me if her life depended on it. We're too close, and way too darn much alike. Thomas took me out to dinner at a really nice, local Italian place. Of course, we were early for our reservation, so we needed to kill some time. We hung out in the nearby Dollar Tree for a few minutes, and I think bought some candy. We're classy like that.

When our reservation time rolled around, we headed into the restaurant, and were guided toward the back. I'm a chatterbox, and don't think I've stopped talking, except maybe to sleep, since 2007, so I was totally oblivious to the fact the hostess was leading us through the kitchen, out the back of the restaurant, across a courtyard, and into a cottage. Never once even floated past my consciousness that this was unusual. As we crossed the threshold into the cottage, Thomas put his hand on my arm, and simply said, "Wait." He walked slightly ahead of me as we left the foyer and entered the candlelit room, strewn with rose petals, and furnished only with a single table and two chairs, then got down on one knee.

I stopped talking.

That was a fantastic proposal. I can't imagine one better suited for the two of us, and I always tear up a bit thinking about it. If I had it to do over again, I wouldn't change a single moment.

I adore a good wedding proposal. I'm a total sucker for all things romantic, anyway, but this one appealed to the filmmaker's wife in me. I hope you enjoy it as much as I did. I grinned like an idiot through most of the video. The highlights for me were the girl's reactions and the slo-mo section set to "O Fortuna" from Carmina Burana. Have a great day, guys!