A dear friend of ours just recently got engaged. It happened on a hilltop in sunny California, beneath an old oak tree and beside a labyrinth rock garden.
Through Zoom, I could see the big smile on her face as she told me about the bright future they’re building together and the family ring that miraculously fit her just right.
After she shared the happy news, she told me that she knew how Greg and I eloped up in the ADKs, but had never heard anything about our engagement. “How did it happen?” she asked.
I laughed and then recounted the story about the evening that I packed up dinner and walked from our little apartment in the graduate student housing complex at UC Irvine, to the atmospheric chemistry lab across campus where Greg was working late.
So obviously in work-mode with his eyes still tracking between the instruments, I took a bite of dinner and came out and said it: “I know we said we didn’t want to get married. But, I think it’s time.”
There was a long pause. Was it confusion or shock? I couldn’t be sure. I continued, “For the health insurance purposes. And for the tax benefits.” Another pause. “So, will you marry me…?” I asked.
It was anything but romantic, with equipment beeping and tanks of liquid nitrogen hissing in the background. He put his fork down and smiled, and in that gentle manner of speaking that is so true to Greg’s heart, he said, “No.”
Strangely enough, I don’t remember feeling as crushed or disappointed as you’d expect. I think I knew, even back then, that this man – the one who was just a few weeks away from finishing his PhD in chemistry and had a big plan to leave it all behind and start an organic farm in NY – was my person.
Later that night, Greg proposed back to me. He asked me to take out the garbage (yes, the garbage…) and when I came back to our apartment, I found him on one knee with candles lit all around the apartment and his great grandmother’s ring – shipped from NY the month before – in his hand.
I said yes and a few weeks later, we eloped on a perfect fall day with just our parents present. The rest, as they say, is history…
Your Farmers,
Jenney & Greg
PS- We have lots of amazing food for you in the Farm Store this week. Go ahead and peruse our offerings and place your order HERE.