I answered my cell phone standing in the checkout line at Lowe’
s. The voice on the other end was my Caroline. “Momma, where is Daddy? Where is Holmes? I need to tell you-all something!” She was so excited, her words were running together. I knew instantly what was going on. “Caroline,” I said. “Are you and Drew engaged?” I was right on target. It was the wedding proposal.
Thomas and I are thrilled with the news. Caroline and Drew are wonderful couple and will have a great life together.
The next day, Thomas and I drove to DeBordieu Beach outside of Myrtle Beach and had dinner with Drew’s family. Caroline and Drew took us to the place of the proposal. It was terribly romantic; Drew copied a poem on a piece of paper with burned edges, rolled it up and placed into a clear bottle. It was truly a romantic event.
My mind drifted to Thomas’ proposal YEARS ago. We had only met the week before and were traveling though Columbia. Thomas stopped for dinner at a restaurant in Columbia called, “The Lizard’s Thicket.” So Southern with all you can eat fixin’s. No kidding, Thomas was gearing up to pop the question in-between the sweet potatoes and collard greens. It horrified me to think that this was IT. I quickly changed the subject. Thank the Lord the BIG question was popped minutes later traveling down I-26. I’ll take the interstate proposal over the Lizards Thicket any day.
I asked Thomas years later what possessed him to propose at the Lizard’s Thicket. This was his answer, “I had a funny feeling in my stomach. I thought it was love but afterwards I realized it was the collard greens.”
