Come Fly With Me

by Fran
(Seattle, WA USA)

This year we celebrate our 45th Wedding Anniversary and I am happy to share with you the story of how my husband proposed to me.

We were living in Alaska at the time and he rented a small airplane to take me on a day of flying and fun.

We flew to Ft. Yukon because this would take us over the Arctic Circle and he could make out a wallet sized certificate for me with my name, the date and the fact that he was the pilot who flew me over the Arctic Circle, a fine tourist attraction for the airlines and tourists normally.

Ft. Yukon was a very small village in those days and so we walked around for an hour or so and then got back in the plane and flew to Circle Hot Springs, which is a fine resort near the Yukon River.

We had a wonderful lunch and went swimming in the warm hot springs outdoor pool.

We started back to Fairbanks in the plane and he had planned to take me to dinner and a show.

On the way back, he took his hands off the controls and turned to me. "I know you said you don't like diamonds so I don't quite know how to do this," he said. "But will you marry me?"

I was so panicked that no one was flying the plane that I said, "Before or after we die?" He laughed and said, "You take over the controls since I'm handing my life over to you!"

Well, I said I would marry him but I knew nothing about flying this plane so if he really wanted to marry me he'd just get his hands back on that wheel and we'd talk more later.

Many years later he bought me an opal as a post-engagement ring and I keep reminding him that a 45th Anniversary is the Sapphire one!