A Little Brag

magalerie

Cameron and I and my sweet mother are in the midst of trying to plan the tiny details of a wedding. There are so many intricacies, I'm scared that something will fall through the cracks. One of these intricacies is the ever-so popular wedding website. This has been on our to-do list for months, and we're finally getting around to it. Cameron and I split up the writing responsibilities, I took the proposal, and he took how we met.

Last night, Cameron finished his section. I sat down to read what he wrote and I finished it in tears. Happy tears, of course. So, I thought I'd take a little time today to brag and show you what my fiance wrote. I warn you, he may just be the best fiance in the world.

Love, Alli

How We Met by Cameron

I’m not really sure where to begin this story, or really even how.  You see, looking back at how Allison and my relationship began is a time filled with almost unequivocal joy and light, that its difficult to look at it without putting on some shades and gently explaining for you, the audience, who can’t really understand our feelings without me expressing it for you in words, or if you were in front of me, with gestures and signs. So, please enjoy the story, and thanks for taking the time to read it.

As fate would have it, Allison and I went to N.C. State together. We both studied Literature, and as such, were bound to find each other out at some point. We first had a Renaissance History class together the spring semester of our freshman year. She was the quiet, too pretty one who was interested in some dude in the class and as such, I kept to myself. But I did see that she was beautiful and delicate – a sort of Petrarchan beauty that is so close at hand but the idea of her beauty kept me miles away.

We didn’t meet again for another 2 years. I’m not sure what happened in those between times. Probably a lot of mistakes and missteps while Allison grew in beauty and goodness while I pined away trying to find that right girl to call Mrs. Winter.

But I digress.

As the Lord would have it, we managed to have two classes together that fateful semester – Advanced Fiction Writing and Literature of Utopias and Dystopias. In between classes, Allison and I had a gap of about 2 hours between the two classes, in which time Mollie, a bridesmaid of Allison’s and Allison, would hang out in Caldwell Lounge. I would go there too, but not with them. I would work on projects or homework, and would hear them chat sometimes, but it took several weeks for me to get up the courage to go and sit with them. The thing that helped was that Mollie was there. I didn’t know Mollie at all, but I figured that there being 3 people would make it less creeper-ish, so I totally used Mollie (sorry Mollie, just being honest) to talk to Allison.

Then we began going to coffee shops between classes and found we sort of have the same group of friends. I started going to Community Groups and what-do-you-know Allison was there. (That I must point out was unintentional, but favorable to my aims at wooing this beautiful Godly woman)

So Allison and I got to know each other better and better. We would talk about things like The Fantastic Mr. Fox or her brother or Jesus or our faith. We just started to bond. It was great.

One night I got up the courage and decided I wanted to ask Allison on a date.

Just a note to you guys: this is like my favorite story

So, I knew The Scottish Play was going on at the University Theater and asked Allison if she was going. Being the good theater girl she is, she affirmed and I asked if she wanted to get dinner. No problems, she thought we were just good friends, so she said yes.

The next night we went to Mitch’s Tavern and ate dinner before we walked to the play. However, Allison didn’t suspect it was a date until I said, “This’ll be on one check” to the waiter. I didn’t know how to read her face. She looked happy and scared. She had never had a boyfriend before, how else was I supposed to get a date out of this girl!?

Well things went well after that. Actually, not immediately…

She told me ‘no’ essentially 3 times before we sat down and decided we wanted to date. But it was good. It made me want to pursue her even stronger. I wanted Allison, I needed Allison and I knew then, that I loved Allison.

And, I won’t lie, pursuing Allison really taught me something about Jesus. I knew she was a keeper. I knew she wasn’t just any Christian girl. I knew she wasn’t just some silly Southern ballerina. I had to hold in my heart constantly the reminder that she is a child of God, loved by the Father and held in his arms by the death of His Son.

This wasn’t just a girl I was trying to love – this was a real angel.

And I didn’t think magic could happen!

Throughout my pursuit of Allison, I knew that things wouldn’t be perfect or even easy. We’ve had good times and bad. We’ve gone through struggles and times of ease. But, what made it incredible was always imagining Allison as my mission field where I would be able to tangibly love someone as Christ loves us.

And one thing I want to tell you all who have read this far, my love for Allison has never, nor will ever be based in her looks or talents or intelligence or grace, but will be based in the love that Jesus has for her. I have to recognize that my love was not from me, but from Jesus, who loved us first. I want to leave you with this verse about how I want to care for Allison. If you see the gospel in this, I pray that you would accept it as truth for you too, because this is the love that is promised for us in Jesus!

Ephesians 5:25-33

Husbands, love your wives, as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her, that he might sanctify her, having cleansed her by the washing of water with the word, so that he might present the church to himself in splendor, without spot or wrinkle or any such thing, that she might be holy and without blemish. In the same way husbands should love their wives as their own bodies. He who loves his wife loves himself. For no one ever hated his own flesh, but nourishes and cherishes it, just as Christ does the church, because we are members of his body. “Therefore a man shall leave his father and mother and hold fast to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh.” This mystery is profound, and I am saying that it refers to Christ and the church. However, let each one of you love his wife as himself, and let the wife see that she respects her husband.