about us

the proposal

many people ask, 'was the proposal a surprise?' the simple answer is 'yes and no.' both patrick and royela spoke freely of the future - a future often expressed in "our"s and "we"s. despite this, patrick tried to keep the ring-shopping a secret from royela. royela, however, is an authority on ruining surprises and her nancy drew-like sensibilities coupled with patrick's complete inability to lie (which is generally a wonderful quality) revealed that a proposal was imminent.

in the final week preceding the proposal, royela asked nearly every day what patrick had done with her ring. it was hers afterall, and she insisted patrick release it to its rightful owner. but patrick was resolved to deliver the proposal on his own terms.

on saturday, may 16, 2009, patrick cooked a delicious brunch as he often did on saturday mornings. this saturday, he was trying out a new recipe for sweet ricotta-stuffed french toast. royela had become quite accustomed to patrick's wonderful cooking and was happily eating unladylike forkfuls of french toast, oblivious to the specialness of the meal. suddenly, patrick stood up and lamented that he'd left off the best part of the dish. again, royela, too familiar with patrick's special flourishes (like pomegranate reductions or bourbon scallion glazes that her palate was far from sophisticated enough to appreciate) continued enjoying her french toast.

patrick reappeared from the kitchen in a blur. he swept suddenly - and surprisingly gracefully! - to one knee, and revealed a small black box from his pocket and asked royela to be his wife. of course, royela - though not as gracefully (please reference aforementioned unladylike forkfuls of french toast) - happily accepted.