The Day He Proposed

We were sitting in the car on the way to Walmart when he asked. I haven't known him long, but he's got a great sense of humor and comes from a great family. I really enjoy his parents. Actually, I connect a little more with his older brother and was surprised to find that he likes me as much as he does. So there we were in the truck, rumbling down the highway when he just looked over at me and asked matter of factly as asked, "Are you married?"

Joanne: No, I'm not married. smiling.... Do you have any suggestions?
Anders: thinking for a second.... What about me?
Joanne: smiling, trying not to laugh.... I don't know if it would work out.
Anders: confused.... Why not?
Joanne: Well, you're a great guy, but you're quite a bit younger than me.
Anders: You could wait for me to grow up.
Joanne: That's true, but the problem is that even when you're grown up, I'll still be 24 years older than you.
Anders: Oh.
Anders: thirty minutes later, still thinking about it... Mom says Larson will always be older than me, and I will always be older than Kiersta.

What an honor. I was deeply touched (and also sad on some level, as I deeply desire to be married and my suitors are pretty much exclusively under the age of 10). One of the kids I taught in kindergarten and one of the kids I've babysat have asked me to marry their dads before, but this was my first direct proposal, so I figured it was worth recording. Anders' family just completed our COAT training program here in Fort Myers. He and his family have been faithful attenders of Spanish lunch, and I've asked his mom to mentor me. She reminds me of Kylee in some ways, an incredibly wise, mature woman of God in her mid thirties. You don't meet people like that everyday.

Larson, almost ten, is an UNO champion and has helped become more self-aware. Always observing and pointing out insightful things, he picked up on the fact that I say, "It's true" a lot. Last week after Spanish lunch he told me I said it four times in the last hour. How funny! And it's true! I am noticing it more and more. I love how kids can help us learn things about ourselves, can affirm aspects of our personality or character that we doubt...

Case in point: A few days ago Anders looked at me and asked emphatically, "WHY are you ALWAYS smiling?" I didn't know what to say then either. I think we all laughed and conversation moved on. Later that night, Anders told his dad that he noticed that I had not answered his question. How funny! The next day I told him I smile a lot because I really love people and enjoy being around them. It was kind of a hard question to answer. Why DO I smile so much? As God continues to grow me, a deeper sense of security and peace fill me. That makes me smile. More often than not, though, I think being loved makes me smile. I smile a lot around their family!