Of course, I'd been been thinking about the best way of proposing to Lily for a while now... because, you know, the cult of marriage is the In-Thing these days. After various attempts at piano playing and dance hall reservations, I realized that something simplistic was the way to go: a picnic. The only trick was timing. This summer was all about Lily studying for the Bar, so I was hoping to propose sometime afterwards. However, I soon realized that there wasn't going to be much time, between moving to Charlottesville and a trip to Hawaii to visit Lily's Mom. That left exactly one day where I had the time for my proposed (pun intended) picnic: July 29th. After dropping hints for a while that I wanted to do the picnic, Lily agreed that it sounded like a nice idea, and after acing the Bar (we presume; she finds out around Turkey Day), the plan was a-go.

July 29th When we got up, I suspected that she knew something. She made me breakfast in bed, and was being very affectionate. She claims ignorance, and that she was just being nice after all I had done for her during the Bar, but I'm not so sure...*grin* Anyway, I had packed the lunch a couple of days earlier, and had placed the ring (my Grandmother's) below a holder for the bottle of wine. The thought was that, towards the end of the meal, I'd ask her to open the bottle, she'd see something down there...and the moment would happen. But that's not exactly what happened.

So we headed on out for San Francisco at around 1 PM, which was ideal, I thought, because the fog usually burned off around then. I didn't tell her where we were going, because I was worried that she would figure it out. Unfortunately, on our way to the highway, a bird dive-bombed in front of the car, and I may have run it over. I got out to double-check, and saw nothing. I wasn't sure if this was an omen, but I chose to ignore it. Once on the highway, she guessed our destination (Lafayette Park across from our old apartment in San Francisco), but I told her we were going there because that's where she started Law School, so I felt it was appropriate to finish it there. To tease her a bit, I decided to play a song we kinda consider our song...and the song started skipping. I started laughing at this second omen, which worried Lily a bit, but it made me all the more convinced that I was going to make this happen today regardless of any superstitions.

Upon reaching our destination...it was fogged in. Well, I had decided to ignore omens anyway, so I found a parking spot, and convinced the nervous-of-the-cold Lily that it wouldn't be that bad. And actually, once we set-up, the fog began to lift, and it warmed right up. Things were finally turning our way. As we snacked on cheese, fruit, and bread, I decided to open the bottle of bubbly cider/grape juice I had brought, so we didn't dive into the wine. Unfortunately, I was so nervous, I broke the top right off, and my hands got cut up with glass. Fortunately, Lily had bandaids, and patched me right up. We then started looking at our old apartment, and talked about how our Love really blossomed there, and she looked at me...and I knew it was the moment.

Quickly, I fumbled for the bottle of wine. She was wondering what was up, since I had just poured the apple/grape drink (fortunately free of glass). As I dug for the ring box, she was thinking I was losing it, because I was digging in the wine holder when there should be nothing. When I pulled out the box, she stared going "Oh my God. You are not. No, no, no, no." What I said, unfortunately, neither of us can now remember. I know it had to do with choosing family, lifetimes together, Love, and surprises. What we both remember was me going down on one knee, opening the box, and saying, "Lily, will you marry me." Of course, being the big sap that I am, I was crying. I am again, writing this. Anyway, she then said, "Oh my God, yes, yes, yes, yes, of course, yes..." And we started kissing.

The ring, unfortunately, was a little too tight, so it's currently on her pinky. We'll be fixing that soon enough. The next morning, we flew to Kauai, Hawaii, where Lily's Mom put up with us in our fianced bliss. Anyway, I hope you enjoyed the story, and know that it's just the beginning. There will be more to come...

Oh, and go to Kauai if you ever have the chance. It's a magical place. But then, so was that San Francisco Hill.