I’m interested in the idea of beginnings. If you read the start of the four gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke and John, you’ll notice that they each start differently, even though they all endeavor to tell the same story. It makes me wonder what’s significant about a story’s beginning.
Very early on in our relationship, Peter and I knew we wanted to live our lives together. We knew we wanted to have fun, share our difficult moments and serve God together. That was our beginning. For us, getting engaged was significant, yes, but also a formality. We already knew we wanted a life together. That was how we started.
The day Pete proposed was a Saturday, like any other. We went up to a different church than we would normally attend so we could have lunch with a family friend, who is the Pastor who will marry us. Weeks before, Pete and I had gone ring shopping, so I knew the moment was looming on the horizon. I just didn’t know how or when.
After eating lunch with Peter and the family friend, we sat around and chatted. We discussed marriage, its joys and its challenges. We picked his brain. We talked. He listened. It was a useful conversation, and I’m sure there will be many more.
Just as it was getting a bit dark outside, Pete urged me to go out and watch the sunset with him. Sounds romantic, and it is, but it’s also our thing. While I was in Chicago, Pete would regularly send me pics of sunsets, so this invitation wasn’t totally out of the ordinary.
Our first stop was to see the kangaroos
For an American like me, I don’t think the novelty of seeing wild kangaroos in a field will ever wear off. We took a lot of stale bread to feed them and watched as they swarmed us. After severaly outings of feeding them bread, I’m not sure what wild kangaroos actually eat.
As Pete noticed the sun dropping lower, he suggested we head over to the lake, where we had watched the sunset a time or two before. I happily hopped in the car. Upon arriving, we headed over to a small wharf. When Pete spotted people there, he changed directions and looked for another spot. It was misty outside as the sun slowly dipped into the horizon. I don’t remember all of the words Pete said. I just remember him getting on one knee and being more nervous than normal (though I don’t know why). I remember that the words he said echoed what was in my heart
As I look back at my story with Pete, I know it will be a story full of beginnings and of new life, because this is the type of life we’re being intentional about living. This is the beginning of our life together. He put our sentiments into words. He made the formality a reality. And that’s our beginning. That’s how we made our start.
At the One Project, they said, we must each write our own story based on our experiences with Jesus. And that’s what Peter and I strive to do – write our own story based on our experience with Jesus.
