Recently Engaged: Nancy & David

David and I met five years ago through a mutual friend. After only eight months, we had
bought a house together and knew that we were in it for the long haul.

Although we knew from the start that we would end up spending the rest of our
lives together, life threw us a few curve balls and the timing just never seemed right
to get engaged… until this year.

Back in May we took an exciting vacation to Northern Italy. I was so hopeful that
David would pop the question, because what would be more romantic than a
proposal in Italy! But on day five of our trip there was still no ring on my finger and I
was convinced that it wasn’t going to happen.

That morning, we took a ferry ride on Lake Como to the stunning island of Bellagio.
They say that it is the most beautiful place in Europe, and I would have to agree.
We meandered our way down along the waterfront to Villa Melzi, the most
magnificent gardens I have ever seen. Eventually we made our way to the top of the
hill overlooking the lake and mountains and found a tiny bench hidden amongst the
trees.

After a few moments of taking in the scenery, David pulled a little bag out of his
hiking pack and handed it to me. Each morning at the hotel I would stash some
bread and fruit into a bag for an afternoon snack. Perfect, I thought, food! I quickly
realized, however, that this was not the delicious snack that I had packed at
breakfast. It was a ring! David didn’t say anything; instead, he just smiled. Words
weren’t needed in that moment.

What a memorable vacation!

*As told by Nancy Sutherland.

This article appears in Sep 6-12, 2012.