Valentines Day dream

'Come on!, hurry up!' He grabbed her hand and pulled her through a thick set of trees. It was early fall and the leaves were beginning to fall beautifully. Colors of red, yellow, and brown fell like rain drops from the trees above. 1

'What are you doing?' She asked when they finally stopped. 'What are we doing here?' She sat down upon a fallen tree and watched as he walked over in the other direction. 'Where are you going? Don't leave me here! Hey you!'2

'Hold on,' he called back at her. He fumbled through a pile of leaves and found what he was looking for. He pulled out a simple wooden box and opened the latch. 'Here it is,' he said and proceeded to pull out a book. 3

'What's this for?' she asked as he walked towards her carrying his treasure in glory. 4

'Has anyone ever told you, you ask to many questions?' he teased. 5

'Only people who don't answer them.' she shot back. A smile spread across her face. 'Now are you going to tell me or am I going to have to ask more questions?' They locked eyes and for that instant everything seemed to melt away. 6

He gave her the book and sat down next to her, pulling her close as she stared at the cover. She traced her fingers along the design. 7

'Open it,' he said. She placed it on her lap and slowly opened the cover. A blank page stared back at her. 8

'Is this a joke?' she asked confused. 9

'No, just a surprise.' He held her hand and turned another page. There, a fine written paragraph was printed on the page. It read:10

'To the one I love, with every little being of my soul, I ask you to always remember this day. Always hold it close to your heart but hold this book of memories closer. This isn't just any photo album. In these pages we will create many memories of one another and us both together. Â We start today, February 14, 2005 and end the day we die. I will forever, always love you. With our love combined we hold a key to something that will never belong to anyone else. To you my love, I give myself, and I know your give yourself to me...'11

He turned and kissed her softly. 'Be mine forever,' he whispered in the wind. She looked in his eyes and searched for a secret meaning. Again, he  took her hand and turned the page. A single sheet of white paper fell out of the book. She leaned over and picked it up, 'Will You Marry Me?' 12

She closed her eyes and fought back tears as she looked towards his face. When she opened them her eyes caught a glimpse of something that took her breath away. A diamond ring was the only thing standing between them. She couldn't fight back tears any longer and finally said, 'Yes I will'. They embraced in a long passionate kiss. Then  sat and watched the setting sun fade away in between the trees.13