Cameron
On Friday, October 1, I left Andrew and Ariel’s apartment in Washington D.C. before the sun was up and caught a bus to the nearest metro station. Sitting on the metro for the 45 minute ride to the airport I contemplated the dramatic action I was taking by flying to Salt Lake City to propose to Meredith. It didn’t make sense financially, but that wasn't going to hold me back. I had a goal, and I wasn’t going to stop until I accomplished it. (Later Meredith and I discussed ways to recoup the money we invested in the plane ticket by eating out less often during our first 3-6 months of marriage.)
Although I was sandwiched between two people on the flight westward, I felt no discomfort. My mind was occupied with thoughts of the upcoming events, and I planned them throughout in minute detail. I had two ideas of where to propose. One was up a winding mountain path at a place where Meredith and I had stopped to create snow animals the winter before. Back then, we had commented to each other that this place held no particular interest for anybody other than it was where we decided to sit and look at the mountains. The other option was along a path that ran between a spring and a waterfall down in the valley near her cabin. I was pretty sure I would choose the second path after she expressed reluctance to being in the hot sun too long that day.
She met me at the Salt Lake City airport driving my car just a few minutes late due to traffic. I felt so happy to see her, and was not nervous at all. And she was nothing but warm, loving, and joyful. I got behind the wheel, and as we drove east on I-80 into the mountains we talked in excited tones about the events of the weekend. We both knew what was going to happen at some point during this day, but we tactfully avoided the subject by sticking to discussing wedding plans.
Meredith
I had a pretty good idea where we were headed, especially when Cameron asked, “Hypothetically, if we were driving to your cabin, which exit would we take?” And then once we were nearing my cabin, “If we were looking for the Yellow Lake trail, which way would we go?” I was excited to be going there, as it is a place where we have some lovely (and early!) memories. But I would have been excited to go anywhere with him that day.
Cameron
By the time we got to the town of Oakley, Meredith had a pretty good idea of where we were going. As we drove down the dirt road that led to her cabin just a few miles away, the alluring scenery made us exclaim how beautiful the vista was, and we took lots of pictures in HDR. I parked the car at the trail head to Yellow Lake, and packed the delicious picnic Meredith had prepared into a backpack. Then, stepping over the boundary separating one life from another (a log across the path), we walked hand in hand through the mixed aspen and pine forest surrounding the lake. As we walked deeper into the shady forest we could feel the powerful pull of destiny drawing us inexorably forward, and we moved onward with a steady stride and a sense of purpose.
Meredith
We got to the trail head and got ourselves out of the car. Cam decided to stay in his nice clothes, and I must admit I felt a little grubby next to him, since I was in rolled up jeans, Chacos, and a pony tail. Annie Oakley and James Bond. We walked to the beginning of the trail, and hand in hand stepped over the log together, aware we were passing from one world into another.
Cameron
When we got to the spring I suggested we stop to eat lunch, because we were both famished. While we sat on rocks next to the brook little flies landed on us and we had to keep brushing them off. I thought about proposing there, but something told me to keep going towards the waterfall, that was a little bit further down the path. As we left the spring I experienced a moment of kismet and felt that the impending event was very close at hand. I wanted to wait, because I had envisioned proposing to her down by the waterfall, but the feeling came again and I followed it.
Meredith
The trail climbs and winds gently for a few minutes before it arrives at the spring by Yellow Lake. There we sat and ate our picnic of sandwiches with fruit, and a little dark chocolate to cap it off. We both drank from the spring. I thought perhaps he might propose there, but after spending some time taking photographs and chatting he suggested we move on. Then I was sure he was going to propose at the waterfall.
Cameron
On the middle of the path beside Yellow Lake I stopped, knelt down on one knee and, taking her hand in mine, said, “Meredith, will you do me the great honor of becoming my wife?” I remember her face was framed luminously against the deep blue October sky, and her sparkling eyes glowed with an inner light. I reached into my pocket and took out a little black case with her engagement ring in it. Opening the box and showing it to her she said, “Yes, oh yes!” as I slipped the ring onto her finger. In the moments that followed I stood up and we embraced, but I have no recollection of how long we stood there. Time seemed to stand still in that moment. Fortunately nobody passed by us on the trail.
Meredith
We hadn’t walked a hundred feet on the trail before we stopped again to observe how beautiful the lake was, spread out before us. Suddenly, Cameron had turned around and was on one knee. “Meredith Marshall,” he started. Then he told me he would be honored to have me as his wife for this life and for all our lives to come. He pulled a small black box out of his pocket, which surprised me greatly as I had expected to go ring shopping with him the next day, and opened it to show me the most beautiful sparkling ring. 33 small diamonds in three rows, catching the sunlight magnificently. I told him it was perfect, and said yes to him a dozen times as he rose and we embraced. He asked if he could put the ring on my finger, and I remember feeling such peace and simple joy.
Cameron
Continuing along the path, we arrived at the waterfall just as a few other people were leaving, and for the next hour or so we had the beautiful spot all to ourselves. We sat on a little wooden bridge and dangled our feet over the edge, eating the rest of our picnic. We talked in earnest about buying houses, raising children, and taking on new responsibilities, but most of all about our deep joy at being promised to each other at long last. As the sun dropped lower in the sky and finally disappeared behind the mountains, I felt a sense of complete happiness and contentment. I knew that everything had happened as it was meant to happen, and all of our trials and successes had led us to this exact spot and time.
Sitting on the bridge, one of the foremost thoughts in our minds was that we finally knew who we were going to marry and spend eternity with. For Mormons, marriages don’t just last “until death do us part,” but they are everlasting. Husband, wife, and children are sealed together for all of eternity in one endless chain that stretches back to the beginning of creation. This eternal perspective is what I wanted, and I knew Meredith was the perfect companion to take on this adventure. We were now on a path that would allow us to progress together towards godly attributes and to each other forever.
On the drive home, we came to accept that we would now be a single unit, sharing all of our successes and struggles. Our dreams and prayers would now be towards a unified goal. The very thought of which brought me great joy, because I have known for a long time how powerful a team we would be together. It was no small miracle that we were able to have enough patience and understanding to weather the storms which our relationship went through, and it was God's divine love which enabled us to reach the point where we were ready to become each other’s.
Meredith
Our time together on the bridge seemed to pass all too quickly, and soon it was time to head back to my family’s home in Salt Lake City, to catch them all unawares! No one knew that he was in town, and everyone at this point thought we were planning on getting married next summer. We drove home to be there on time for our 8:30 gathering ... I had told everyone they should be there then so we could spend time with Keenanonie, who were there for only one night because of his grandpa's funeral. They got there just before Cam and I pulled up, but to my dismay Dad was still at a missionary reunion! We snuck Cam out behind the house, and he hid on the patio. I thought it would only be about 20 minutes until everyone was finally together in the big room. I waited and waited, and kept trying to keep people in there. Joe and Melissa finally emerged from watching the football game, Amanda and Sammy were playing with Thomas in the Great Hall, but Dad! He still wasn't there. Finally when it had already been an hour, I texted him again and said, "Dad, please come home. I have something to share, and I have to do it tonight." Well that got him into the car pretty fast! He drove away before even doing his part at the reunion, sweet man. He got home, and everyone was finally in the room, and then Keenan got a phone call and left. All I had thought about for the last hour and a half was poor Cameron sitting on the back patio waiting and waiting to be called in. I could tell Keenan’s phone call was going to be a long one, so I just gave in and texted Cameron, "Now!"
But then Nonie said, "Mom I'm going to go into the mudroom to get my raspberries. Is that where they are?" I was panicked, because I didn't want her to miss the moment, and so I piped up, "I have raspberries!" She looked at me confusedly and said, "Here?" And I said, "No, at my house in Provo. I bought them for really cheap. Only $2.50!" Nonie said, "Wow, that is cheap. Normally..." and I was saved by the bell as Cameron knocked on the round door leading into the Great Hall. Silence. Then I think it was Amanda who said, "What the heck?" And someone else, "No one ever knocks on that door." It was 10:00 at night. Joe went over and slowly opened it and let out a surprised, "hey!" And soon Cameron emerged into the room and everyone let out gasps of surprise. "What are you doing here? Aren't you supposed to be in DC?" He explained that we would tell them everything, but we had to show them a slide show first. So we showed them all a PowerPoint we had put together about our journey to engagement, with the grand finale being the date we are getting married: December 28, 2010. Thankfully, Keenan had also made it back into the room just in time. What a spectacular surprise it was for everyone, and they were all so very happy.
Cameron
We planned to surprise her family back in Salt Lake City by having me knock on their side door in the middle of the night when they were all gathered in the Great Hall. They thought I was still in Washington DC, and would (we surmised) be completely surprised by my miraculous appearance. The element of surprise was maintained (although it came close to being undermined when Amanda and Thomas walked outside where I was sitting in the dark and passed within 5 feet of me without noticing me in the shadows)! After Joe answered my knock, there was a sudden rush of indrawn breath as I came in and said “Surprise!” They all asked why I was there, and I said that would be explained shortly, but first Meredith and I wanted to show them a slide show.
The PowerPoint presentation went off without a hitch, and by the time it ended everybody knew what the announcement was going to be. But they didn’t know the date, and when we said that our wedding would be on December 28 everybody came up to give us hugs and congratulations. It was fortuitous that Nonie and Keenan, Joe and Melissa, and Julia could all be gathered there from different corners of the country. We all had a great time staying up late and talking, but by 11pm I was feeling the effects of being up for the last 22 hours or so and had to turn in for the night.
Meredith
And so it is happening. The stars are finally aligned. And I feel equally sure-footed in the daytime and in the nighttime, when we are together or when we are apart. It has been a remarkable journey --- or rather the grand and remarkable beginning to a journey that will take us through the eternities. There is much yet to learn about each other, but that, in my mind, simply means that there is much yet to love about each other. We have been through the fire, and are made of strong metal. I have no illusions about the next sixty years or so --- I know it is unlikely to be permanent marital bliss. I know we will have our challenges and our changes to cope with. But it is precisely that expectation that will help us make it, because we are prepared to deal with them. We are prepared to call upon the Lord for strength and for guidance. We are prepared to make our home a Christ-centered place, where we and others may find a loving refuge. We are prepared to show each other the respect and support that we have, truly, always shown each other to the present minute. Our commitment to each other is not based upon our shared enjoyment of the world, or upon romance, or upon our life goals, or even upon our strong and genuine love for each other. Rather, our commitment is built to foster those things and to support them, but its foundation is our devotion to God. That is what makes it unbreakable.
Cameron Rubaloff Nelson has found his way to the deepest part of my heart. I wrote to his grandmother Marijoy Rubaloff recently: “Can I tell you how thrilled I am to be marrying your grandson? It is wonderful to be able to voice it to you aloud, now that things are public. He has the most remarkable soul, and I feel qualified to say so, since I consider myself a connoisseur of souls, of sorts. I love everyone I come across, for this detail or that, for their patterns and textures, their luminosity or reflectivity, and I delight in the study. But Cameron has interrupted all my soul-searching by breaking into my vision with his brilliant, creative (in the godly way), gentle but mighty, energized soul. It feels like an ancient one. Oh I love him.”
Cameron
It was the end to an amazing day that will change both of our futures forever. We look forward to the unfolding of our lives with excitement and faith. Our goals include raising a strong and loving family, serving in our community and church, and exploring this wonderful place called Earth together.
A few of the HDR photos we took:
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