‘Getting married’ is a normal topic between Tine and I – we are comfortably open and cheesy that way. :) We discuss what our ideal age to be married is, which churches would be in our short list, who will be part of our entourage and even where do we go for honeymoon. But we don’t go much into details as she would often step back and, with a slight hint of seriousness, ask me “Magpapakasal nga ba tayo?” To which I would usually just reply mischievously “Siyempre, conservative parents ko eh” with a grin. I knew for myself that the only way I can seriously address the question is if I propose.
My proposal didn’t turn out as a surprise despite my efforts to make it one. What happened is a scene you could imagine happening in chick-flick comedies but almost never in real life. It was a Monday morning nearing Christmas that Tine found out that I was planning to propose. We came from her house with the cupcakes we baked and boxed overnight to give out as Christmas trinkets for our officemates and friends. Before we entered our office building, we stopped to get our company ID’s from our bags. As I pulled out mine from my backpack, I felt something was caught by my ID’s lace. It completely slipped out of my bag and dropped on the floor. Ting ting ting. It made that sound as it rolled towards Tine’s foot. I froze seeing that what was rolling didn’t look like a coin. Tine stooped down and picked up the round metal thing that fell out of my bag. After a few heartbeats, with a partly-surprised-partly-mocking tone and a smile she asked: “Ano ‘to???” It was her tropa friendship ring which I sneaked out about two weeks ago from her bag to get her ring size. She immediately followed it up with “Bakit nasa’yo ‘to???”. I was still just standing there frozen and lost for words while screaming inside my head: NOOOOOOOO!!!!! That was it; she knew that I was on the move. I thought I might as well take advantage of my mishap, so I asked her if the ring perfectly fits well. It was a teeny bit big for her so I updated my notes on the ring. It was 4 months ago and it still makes us laugh reminiscing that booboo moment.
I initially intended to propose on Valentine’s Day – to add a special personal meaning to it (and consequently avoid feeling manipulated by the consumerist economy we are in – where society expects you to buy flowers and make restaurant reservations when their prices and bookings are at their peak). Unfortunately, it falls on a weekday and Tine wasn’t intending to file a leave on that day despite my sneaky conscious effort to sway her. So, I opted to propose on our 3rd anniversary day – January 21, 2012. I already had the ring with me the 1st week of January. And because of the booboo moment, keeping Tine unsure that I already had it consumed a lot of effort!
We planned a Tagaytay day trip to celebrate our 3rd anniversary. This was our original itinerary:
08:00 – 08:30 Pink Sisters Convent (grab some goodies)
09:00 – 10:00 Bag of Beans (breakfast)
10:00 – 12:30 Caleruega Church
12:30 – 02:30 Buon Giorno (lunch)
03:00 – 05:30 Sonya’s Garden (massage)
05:30 – 07:00 Buy pasalubong
07:00 – 08:30 Pamana (dinner)
We pretty much followed through our planned itinerary with minor adjustments – we drove through McDonald’s for breakfast and went to Bag of Beans in the afternoon for a quick coffee stop after our massage.
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| At Caleruega |
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| Opium Bed of Buon Giorno at Cliffhouse Tagaytay |
Before we even set out for our trip, I already decided on where I would propose. Caleruega, Buon Giorno at the Cliffhouse, Sonya’s Garden and Pamana all setup a good ambience but I felt the desire to propose at a place that was meaningful for us. Also, knowing that Tine doesn’t want me proposing in a huge crowd because she might just be pressured to answer “yes”, I know that I should propose at a place where she feels comfortable and secure. I decided to propose in their house.
Tine’s family is simply the sweetest. It was already late when we arrived at their house. Everyone sleeps late in their house so we knew that everyone would still be awake. What we didn’t expect was that they prepared a sweet surprise for us. They had our pictures, love quote printouts, and balloons taped around their living room.
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| The Surprise |
I was happy that I got Tine’s mom’s blessing before I actually proposed. Tine and her cousins went out to get the pasalubongs which we still left in the car. Before I went out, I talked with Tine’s mom and her aunts who were at the kitchen that time, told them I was planning to propose that day and I wanted to get their blessing. Her aunt said in a half-scream “Sabi ko na sa’yo Ate Baby [Tine’s mom] eh!” -- as if she predicted that I was going to propose soon. They seemed stunned and didn’t quite give me the blessing yet so I asked them “Ok lang po ba?” Her mom finally said “Bahala ka…” which sounded to me more than a yes than a no, (i.e. Bahala ka [sa buhay mo]!) So I took that as their blessing. :P
Waiting for the opportunity to propose was just nerve-wracking. After some time of awkward smiles to cover my nervousness, I finally found a chance. Everyone went out somewhere and we were the only ones left in the living room. With a cracking voice, I said my lines. She laughed heartily then started crying at the same time, she gave some nods, and then she finally said YES. We were engaged!
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| Putting a ring on it. :) |
Cheers!
