20 Years

December 21 was a special day. Since I wasn't in school, dates weren't so very important and I didn't think much about this one -- didn't really even realize it was the 21st, or contemplate why it was special. Lucky for me someone did. I knew Shane had something up his sleeve. He was adamant that we had to be in Georgia by a certain time on the 21st -- not a little challenging, by the way, finishing school, working in Nights of a Thousand Candles and picking up niece and nephews for traveling with us. And not only that, but I was a little anxious as I had discovered that whatever he had planned involved me and formal wear. Thankfully, he did finally concede and show me the dress he had purchased earlier for me; allowed me to try it on and make sure it fit and that I had all the proper embellishments, etc. It was beautiful --mid-calf length, deep garnet with cut glass black buttons all the way down the front; shirt collared at the neck, and with a wide fabric sash. Black hose, black dress shoes and a shimmery black wrap completed the ensemble. I never did catch on to what he was doing, but when we got to his parents, dropped off the niece and nephews, visited with the in-laws; then had to get dressed and run. We had quiet romantic Christmas music playing in our Dodge Durango as we drove to Atlanta (Kenny G, Jim Brickman, etc.). We held hands and talked quietly, with nothing said about what we were doing (Not that a million different things haven't crossed my mind -- Michael Buble in concert, Riverdance, Nutcracker, a Broadway style show. . . . )But when we turned the corner in Atlanta, and I saw the Shane Co. sign, it all became ever-so-clear. I realized when it was and where we were and why we were where we were. Twenty years ago to the day, Shane asked me to marry him -- with a diamond ring from the Shane Company, a wonderful jewelry specialist in Georgia. We were here to celebrate a twentieth anniversary. He whisked me inside, had them clean my rings, told them why we were there and asked to look at some diamond earrings he had first looked at on-line. They were 1/3 carat, and he purchased them for me right there, and I was able to wear them out of the store. Everyone was so sweet and impressed with our twenty-year celebration. The diamonds were beautiful -- the 1/3 carat was significant. My engagement ring is 1/3. A couple of anniversaries later, Shane bought me an anniversary ring which was 1/3 carat, so now, with my earrings, my carat is complete. But the evening was not done. From there, he took me to the restaurant where he proposed. It has since changed hands, but the building remains. 20 years ago, it was the Lark and the Dove. Now it is Ruth's Chris Steakhouse. He had made reservations months ago. Everyone called us by name, and it was a lovely evening. I felt decadent dressed in the beautiful dress he had bought me (which fit perfectly, by the way). The food was expensive, but absolutely delicious! We held hands often, and after we finished our dinner, our waitress brought out a heavenly mile-high chocolate mousse pie with a candle in it, which we shared. The evening was full of reminiscences of earlier evenings together-- and the romance, which sometimes flickers dimmer than once-upon-a-time shone as brightly as that single candle. We laughed, smiled, looked at Christmas lights and remembered how we began and how far we've come. What an evening!