To preface: I am originally from Arizona and I am going to law school
in Minnesota. My fiance lives in Arizona.
I have really fallen in love with a great man. The story? We call it
Trains, Planes and Automobiles: Engagement Version.
It all started when Rob's mom presented him with a ring that she
wanted to pass down to me. Up to this point we had been talking about
marriage for months. I really thought it would happen this past
summer, but it didn't. In God's time, right? So, once Rob received
the ring, he immediately began trying to figure out how to meet me in
the midwest. He would be starting a job in 2 weeks so he wanted to
get out here as soon as possible. Flights at that time were about
$1000. So, the best thing he was able to find was a train ride to
Chicago. The train didn't have a connection to MN. So, he called me
and asked me to meet him out there. It's only about a 5 hour drive
from here. That way we'd have more time to spend with each other and
get to see Chicago. I'd never been there.
We planned to go to mass once he got into Chicago and then to dinner.
Little did I know, he was going to propose on the steps of the church
before we would go into mass. He spoke with a priest at the church
and asked him to give us a blessing before going into mass. We would
then go to dinner and enjoy the town. Notice I said "would."
The adventure begins. So, he would drive to Flagstaff to get on the
train for what he thought would be a 32-hour trip. The train that was
suppose to pick him up was delayed because of a train wreck that
killed over 2 dozen people in California. Needless to say he had to
wait a few hours for his train. Once he boarded it was free sailing
(or free training) right? Wrong. Passing through New Mexico, the
train hit a cow. The train didn't just knock the cow off the tracks,
it actually ran over the cow. So, the train officials had to get
stop, get out and look at the cow. For another couple hours.
Meanwhile, Rob called me and told me not to leave for a couple hours
because he was going to be late. We probably wouldn't make mass. :(
When they finally removed the cow from the tracks and started moving,
we thought he'd be in Chicago in time for dinner. Wrong. Going
through Kansas, the train had to stop for a few hours because there
were several tornadoes touching down. They had to wait until it was
clear enough to pass through. Rob told me that all the passengers
were restless and almost protesting.
46 hours later (almost two days), he arrived in Chicago. When I
picked him up from the train station, he seemed a little anxious and
just glad to be off a train ride that ended up being 14 hours longer
than anticipated. Disappointed that all of his plans fell through,
but so excited and happy to be with me, he just couldn't hold it in
any longer and got down on one knee. Although it didn't happen the
way he wished, I couldn't help but think how romantic it was that he'd
go through all that just to get to me and ask me to be his wife. Of
course I said yes! We enjoyed the day in Chicago…did you know that
Chicago received record rainfall that day and the streets flooded?
Yea.
We drove back to Minnesota and celebrated with my friends and brother.
We were able to merge his mom's ring with my late mom's ring. It's
absolutely beautiful. Once we got back to Minnesota I told him that
we would look for a plane ride home for him this time. Luckily, I
found a one way ticket for $100.
Thank you for letting us share our story!
Regards,
An Nguyen