In April 2014, Steph and I took a trip to New York City. We were living in Toronto at the time, and took the bus down to NYC at every opportunity to go see Broadway shows and eat at our favourite vegan spots in Manhattan. It was, and still is, one of our favourite cities in the world.
On this particular trip, we were spending a few days with a close friend who lived in Brooklyn. He worked at our favourite restaurant called Pure Food and Wine, an upscale raw vegan restaurant in Gramercy Park. We had been many times before, and it was our happy place, our favourite place in the world, in fact. The restaurant was truly beautiful and was often frequented by celebrities (I say was, because it unfortunately closed in 2016). It had a gorgeous garden courtyard and the friendliest staff. The food was sophisticated and incredible, and splurging on a meal there was always a highlight of our trips.
On Thursday April 17th, Steph and I woke up early in our friend, Greg’s Brooklyn apartment. Steph said that her and Greg were going to go out and pick up breakfast, and she told me to go back to sleep. I woke up a little later to delicious vegan Brooklyn bagels, and we spent a quiet morning hanging out. In the afternoon, the three of us headed into Manhattan to go to Pure Food and Wine. Steph and I had a lunch reservation, and Greg was working his shift. He served us an amazing meal, and Steph and I had a perfect afternoon in our favourite place.
After lunch we stepped out of the restaurant to go for a walk. Immediately to our right was a classic New York brownstone, and a young man sitting on the steps with a guitar on his lap. Steph slowed her steps and paused outside the building, holding my hand and flashing me a smile. The guitarist was playing our song ‘First Day of My Life’ by Bright Eyes. It was a song I had played in a class I taught, when Steph and I first met at the dance studio in Vancouver, and we’ve always considered it ours. When I realized what song the guitarist was playing, my face lit up and I smiled back at Steph. We stood and listened, and never did my mind jump to the conclusion of what might happen next. I simply enjoyed this perfect New York moment. Time really seemed to stand still, and when Steph lowered herself down onto one knee with tears in her eyes, my hands flew to my face in disbelief and I started to cry. I remember her saying something about how we’ve always talked about getting married one day, but the rest of it is a beautiful blur. I think I knelt down on the sidewalk beside her and cried and hugged her. The world truly melted away and it was just us.
What felt like minutes later, but was probably only several moments, the song ended and the guitarist stood up while Steph introduced him as her friend, Arkady. He then introduced his wife Christina who had been standing behind us taking photos. It was then it dawned on me that Steph had arranged this beautiful surprise, and it had all been a big secret kept between everyone but me. We turned around and looked back to the restaurant, where the staff were standing outside cheering and applauding. Our friend Greg was beaming holding a tray of champagne, and Steph was giggling with excitement. We walked back to the restaurant and celebrated with lots of tears and laughter, while everyone told me how wonderful it all went. I asked Steph who else knew that she was going to propose, and she laughed and told me that everyone did! She had told her family, my parents, and my best friend; and of course everyone in the restaurant knew. She explained how she had been planning this for months, and had enlisted Greg’s help with the finer details. That morning she told me to sleep in so they could discuss the plan while grabbing breakfast. I am still impressed that she managed to keep such a major secret from me. We share everything with one another and it was incredible that I never found out. It was the most perfect and beautiful surprise, and I still tear up when I think back to that day.
I know there can be so much pressure around having the perfect proposal, but in my opinion it doesn’t matter where you are or who else is there. In that moment, everything else disappears and it’s just you two. It’s a moment that you will remember for the rest of your lives, and it’s so special.
The rest of our time in NYC was a flurry of excitement and giddiness. We called our families and friends to share the news, and celebrated our engagement by winning lottery tickets to the musical Hedwig, and meeting Neil Patrick Harris on our last night in the city. It was perfect.
Somehow, it took us years to return to New York after that trip, and Pure Food and Wine isn’t there anymore. In a way, that makes it even more special that it all happened the way it did. We did finally visit NYC again in the Fall of 2018, and we decided to return to our special spot to relive this beautiful memory. The restaurant has closed, but the building is still there, and the magic of that New York street felt just the way it did on that Spring afternoon in 2014. On our last day in the city, we made our way there, and spent some time soaking up all the memories. So much has happened and changed since that day. We are older, stronger, braver, more fulfilled, more ambitious, and now we’re married. The one thing that hasn’t changed, is how in love we are, how sure we are that spending our lives together is what we’re meant to do, and how committed we are to being the best partners we can be for one another. I hope we continue to return to New York, and always find time to stand together on that sidewalk, remembering what it felt like to choose each other. Remembering how it felt to laugh, and cry, and embrace, and make one of the most beautiful memories that we will ever make together.
Engagement photos by Sara Rogers Photography.
