People sometimes ask us how we ended up in St. Paul, since my husband is from the U.K., and I’m from Saskatoon. I guess it all began with the journey of a somewhat naďve but idealistic white boy named Tom. He decided to travel to India on a charitable mission, hoping to teach at a local school and bring something good to a poverty-stricken community.
While there, he met two of my friends, student doctors from Saskatchewan, who’d also gone there to do some charity work at the local hospital. None of them had any idea what to expect and were shocked by the corruption, as well as the cruel and inhumane conditions of people and children living there. But one good thing came of it all – they leaned on each other and became friends. As they parted, Tom told them that if they ever got married, he would come to their wedding.
My friends got married in August 2005 in Saskatoon, and true to his word, Tom came, which is where he met me. We spent time together along with friends, going to outdoor concerts, biking and playing soccer, but I was clueless about his interest in me. I just kept wondering, ‘Why does he keep passing me the ball? I’m lousy at soccer!’
Imagine my shock when he told me he would like to come and visit me in Nova Scotia, where I was heading off to study. Could he be a stalker? A serial killer? A man who was escaping arrest warrants in the U.K.? I had no idea. Even if he was on the level, it seemed unlikely we could make a relationship work because of the distance factor. So I told him whatever happened, I hoped he would meet someone special in life.
“I think I already have,” he told me.
It may have ended there, but I was reading The Alchemist at the time, a book that talked about paying attention to signs from the universe. There were many signs I got about Tom - from him liking the fact that my shoelaces were always coming undone to him sending me yellow tulips – I loved yellow tulips! - for Valentine’s Day.
He visited me again the next spring and we had a beautiful week exploring the beaches and forests of that gem of a province. But as good as the week was, imagine my nervousness when he started asking about my jewelry preferences and comparing his finger size to mine.
‘He can’t be thinking of proposing. There’s no way,’ I thought to myself. ‘He’s crazy, but he’s not that crazy.’ Well, I underestimated his craziness. The next day, while strolling down Point Pleasant Park and watching seals play in the ocean, he pulled out a ring and said he was sure in his heart that he wanted to marry me.
Even though I wasn’t as confident, I knew enough to trust his intuition. I realized the absurdity of the situation – here I was, with a man with whom I had spent only a few weeks of time, wearing a Spiderman toque for Pete’s sake, entertaining a marriage proposal! But I found myself saying yes – so many signs seem to have led me to this point. I couldn’t ignore where the universe was taking me or the trust I had in him and his open heart.
We were married a few short months later, by the river in Saskatchewan and the same two friends whose wedding had brought us together were our witnesses. People thought we were crazy. I’m sure they thought we were crazy again when, after living in England for six months, we decided to move to St. Paul, where I’d gotten a job at this paper. I struggled contemplating uprooting my husband from his job, his family and life, but at the same time, I felt in my heart it would be the right decision.
Just like it brought us together, intuition has led us here as well, and given us a number of blessings (if not great weather) - our child, two cats, a lovely home and great colleagues, family and friends, as well as each other.
And even though I tell him I don’t need them, he still buys me flowers on a regular basis.
Now we are ready to embark on our next adventure in welcoming our second child into the world, something that could happen any day now. I’m nervous all over again, but I know that the universe will steer us right, just as it always has done.
