I alluded to this earlier, but I had an idea before we even began dating that Amber was the one. I still, however, planned to live this bachelor lifestyle until I was 35 or 40. I told Amber all of this when we first started dating. Amber knew I was the one for her too, but it took her a long time to admit it to me. Once she was able to admit it, she was ready, but I was still trying to stick to my timeline.
Well in late 2015, at the same time I told my parents I was quitting my job to run my agency full time, I told them how serious my relationship was with Amber. So when I told them a year later that the proposal was going down, they weren’t surprised.
Amber was down-under in Australia, so I contacted two of Amber’s friends, Britney and Jade, and one of her brothers, Sean, to help me pull it off. Jade, Amber’s friend from Spelman, was on the trip and her objective was to make sure Amber arrived, and when she arrived, not look like she’d be on a plane for 24 hours. Britney, Amber’s longest tenured friend, would document the proposal.
On the Saturday after Thanksgiving, I flew up to Philadelphia, rented a car, and drove to Amber’s parents’ house to ask for their blessing. Sean was there so I could come through the basement door to speak with Amber’s dad before talking to her mom. After speaking with them, I drove to south Philly and picked up a bucket of my mama’s favorite cookies. Then I drove down to DC where I stayed with my cousin, Daniel Delk, and his family for the night.
Sunday would be the big day! The guest preacher at Daniel’s church had a sermon about taking and grabbing your blessing when God presents it in front you. It would be very fitting for the day. When Amber arrived in America from Australia, she had 2 connecting flights before she would land in DC. We spoke on the phone and even video-chatted while she had a lay-over in New York. She believed I was in Atlanta the entire time.
When me and Britney arrived at the airport, she suggested we find some flowers. We did. But the place was closed. Britney convinced them to make one more sale before calling it a night. So I have my flowers. I have the ring. Now I need my Amber.
I wanted Britney there to not only be able to share this moment with her oldest friend, but to also broadcast it live on Facebook to all of Amber’s family and friends who could not be present at the airport gate.
As Britney recorded, Jade got off the plane first, and soon after came Amber. I got on a knee. Popped the question. And Amber said yes! To cap off the night, I’d reserved at section at The Graham hotel’s rooftop bar in Georgetown to have a celebratory champagne toast with our friends from Washington, DC, Baltimore, and Philadelphia.
The Graham is named after Alexander Graham Bell, inventor of the telephone. Without telephones and airplanes, our relationship would have never occurred.
One thing we’ve both heard but had to learn firsthand during this relationship is that even though things don’t work out when we want in our time, God’s timing is perfect when He is involved. We never knew each other in school. We didn’t start dating until after I moved 600 miles away. Amber wanted a ring from me a long time ago. And I planned to be a bachelor until I was 40. And yet, we got married on June 3rd, 2017!
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