The Engagement Story

On December 26, 2010, Titus and I got engaged. The night before, I woke up in the middle of the night with horrible stomach aches; I woke up feeling only a little better, but I refused to allow myself to spend the afternoon in bed. Two hours after a quick breakfast and stopping numerous times for directions, we finally arrived at Koulen Mountain Resort. Vandy and Tess are Titus' and my closest friends, and I was excited to spend the day as "us four." While I got the dreamy private proposal I wanted, it was nice to join Vandy and Tess soon after to share the moment with them, and to celebrate together.

You may notice in the first picture how appropriately I am dressed for such a beautifully memorable day. Tess and I traveled in our swimming clothes; Titus, knowing the significance of the occasion, chose to wear a black pin stripe dress shirt and black dress pants. Before breakfast, I asked him why he was wearing his wedding clothes to go swimming in a river; he laughed, and I was satisfied.

We soon found a short waterfall that was crowded by foreigners; thinking it was the resort's main attraction, we all became inwardly disappointed - though no one expressed it until later. Continuing down the trail, we found a long set of wooden stairs that led us to a much taller, louder, and more beautiful waterfall.

I cannot dream of a more beautiful place to get engaged.

The four of us found a dry, comfortable place to sit and we spent some time together simply watching the waterfall. I grabbed Titus' hand and lead against him. I couldn't say anything; I was in awe of the beautiful falls, the beautiful moment, and the beautiful man I was with. Finally, Titus broke the silence and asked me to swim with him. I was surprised. Titus had announced earlier that the water was too cold to swim, and although I was thinking the same thing, I knew he was willing to swim in freezing cold water for me, and I wasn't going to deny the opportunity.

With our teeth chattering, we entered the water and Titus promptly began splashing me. Jerk! I splashed him back. We laughed. We laugh a lot actually; it was one of the first things that attracted me to him. Eventually, Titus pointed to a secluded rock and asked if I wanted to sit and talk. I like it when he wants to talk, so I started racing to him to the rock.

A few minutes later, I suggested that we move to a rock in the sun, where it would be a little warmer. On that rock, Titus and I talked about our past, present, and future lives together. He asked me if I remembered all the details of our few previous dates, and he stated that he would never forget this date. Next, he calmly and confidently asked me to marry him. I was surprised breath-taken!

I was surprised that I was surprised! The previous afternoon during lunch, our mutual friend, Arun, passed me the rice and encouraged me to "eat more and build up [my] strength for Tuesday." I asked him what was special about Tuesday, he turned to Titus and asked, "Is your engagement party on Tuesday or Wednesday?" So I figured if that was Saturday, and our
engagement party was on Tuesday, Titus would have to actually propose on Sunday or Monday. (Mental note, don't share your secrets with Arun!) Everything was so absolutely perfect on Sunday that I was so caught-up in enjoying the moment and basking in our love, that I had completely forgotten to even anticipate his proposal!

I could feel my eyes grow big and my jaw drop. My first words were, "Are you kidding me??" Breath-taken. After a good 45 seconds, I finally moved my eyes from his eyes and to the ring between his fingers. Another 30 seconds later -- probably the longest minute-and-a-half of his life! -- I asked, "You kept my ring in your pocket while we were swimming???!!" He knew I would notice a bulging box in his pocket, so he kept my precious ring between his precious fingers... in his pocket... in the rushing river waters. I don't remember ever saying yes, but somehow Titus was assured that "YES! YES! YES!," I want to marry him.


We're getting married!!!

Love love love, Jewel
the future Mrs. Romdenh Chamnol