The internet is our friend

by Sandi, Chicago, IL

Sven (his real name) and I met online through a dating site three years ago. I’m 43 and have never been married. I was getting pretty cynical by the time we met. Against the odds (age, different races and the world in general) we got together. We met a week after a flurry of emails and phone calls, and have seen each other every week since then.

Last Memorial Day weekend we went away to Montreal. I love French food and culture. He loves nature (they have lots of parks). Since Montreal is French-speaking, we thought it would be a good place for us to try. We were in the process of selling my condo and buying a larger home for both us. We definitely needed a break from everything.

We flew to Montreal. The night we arrived it was rainy and gray. We went out for dinner and planned the next day. The next morning we awoke to a sunny day. Montreal is really charming! We went to the Biodome and walked all over the area. We found ourselves starving and and decided to stop for lunch downtown. We chose a bistro with outdoor seating. Sven is allergic to refined sugar, so selecting food from menus can be challenging. After we ordered, the food started coming. Everything was delicious. Sven asked if he could read me something. I said sure. I though he was going to read me something from the guidebook about some zoo or park that he wanted to walk to. Did I mention that he’s a nature lover? Anyway, he started reading. It wasn’t about a park. It was a poem that he had written about me. He kept reading and started to get very flush. His hands started shaking. I thought that there must have been sugar in his lunch and he was having an allergic reaction. I am not kidding! I tried to get him to stop reading and tell me what was wrong. He just kept on reading. At the end of the poem he asked me in French (one of his friends had translated it for him) “will you marry me?” He pulled a burgundy velvet box out of his pocket. I had no idea what he was talking about. I was so preoccupied with his trembling hands I did not pay attention to what he was reading to me. I opened the box and there was a beautiful ring: two-carat round cut aquamarine stone with two 1/4 carat white diamonds on the side. So different. He designed it himself. I said yes … of course. we will be having a destination wedding on 3/07 in Mexico. He’s a great guy and I could not be happier!