A Chronicle of my Changing Times.

Let me introduce you to...

I haven’t posted much lately as some may have noticed.  I’m down to about once a month or so now.  Some of that has to do with the busyness of my life right now.  Some has to do with deciding how much of myself to put out here into the ether.  Some has to do with the audience I’ve developed over time – not that I don’t appreciate all who read, I have just found myself considering who reads when I write.  I’m not sure if I like that or not.  One final factor has been some people in my life have made it a point to point out a desire for privacy.  One of these people is Rumiana, who I’d like to say a few words about here. (Pictured on the left: The Canal on the grounds of the Governor's Palace in Williamsburg where I had planned to have that special conversation with Rumy.  Due to the rain it just was not meant to happen there)

 

After coming over from Bulgaria around New Years for a 2 week visit, Rumy is now my fiancée.  I consider myself wonderfully lucky to have found her and am very much in love.  In a life that’s going faster than I ever imagined possibly and pulling me in a thousand different directions she is a source of calm and peace.  She is the single most important thing in this world to me.  Although we are very different in many ways, we complement each other in ways I never dreamt possible.  Simply put, she helps me become a better man.  She does this through encouragement, support and fostering in me a desire to take action towards a better life together.  I can’t and do not want to imagine my life without her.  (Pictured: Rumy in her new dashing red jacket)

 

She was one of the first people I met when arriving in Haskovo close to 3 years ago now.  My first memory of her was how beautiful her eyes were (are).  Unfortunately in my nervousness I was a bit of a dufus in some of our initial encounters and I left her with an unfavorable impression which took over a year to get past.  Over time she eventually became my work counterpart (due to a bit of subtle maneuvering on my part) and then my friend.  At some point I noticed I had a bit of a crush on her and eventually decided to pursue it even though my time in Bulgaria was finishing.

 

Let’s just say that she took more than a bit of wooing on my part.  Overcoming two big obstacles, that initial impression and the fact that my service was quickly coming to an end, was not easy.  But over time I wore her down, all the time building a deeper friendship than I had ever had with any other woman I had dated.  We came to a juncture when I left Bulgaria last summer.  She saw me off in Sofia on one of the hottest days I can remember.  I promised to call her when I got to Spain.  I did just that, and have done so every single day since – more often than not, twice a day lately.  (Pictured: The Fife and Drum Band in Colonial Williamsburg)
 

 

Continuing a relationship with 5000 miles separating you is not easy.  I would not recommend it.  It will either drive you apart or drive you together.  In our case it drove us together.  I left Bulgaria in July.  By August I knew without a doubt I wanted to spend the rest of my life with Rumy.  By September I had asked her to come visit me here in Washington DC and bought her a ticket.  By October I had talked with her openly about marriage and filing paperwork for her to come here permanently.  By November I had bought her an engagement ring.   And in December, before the New Year struck, I had asked her to be my wife. (Pictured: on the balcony of my apartment the day she returned to BG)

 

We had a wonderful time while she was here.  She had a chance to see Washington, DC where I live, work and the University I attend.  We spent a very long (and wet) weekend down at Colonial Williamsburg – even making time for a side trip down to Virginia Beach so she could see the Atlantic Ocean for the first time.  We traveled down to Charlotte so she could meet my parents, family and especially my adorable niece Jenna.  The trip seemed to be over before I had time to truly appreciate having her here.  After being apart for so long, simply holding her hand while driving (and we did a lot of driving) was a quiet joy.  (Pictured: There's the ocean!)

 

Now, as we plan to get together again soon, time cannot go by quickly enough.  I’ve lived long enough on this earth alone to know that I don’t want to do it any longer than I have to.  I have found the woman I want to have beside me all the days of my life – through successes, failures, births, deaths, travels and that day to day ordinariness that is truly what life is about.  For those of you who know her already, this is nothing new.  You know me and how I feel.  But for those of you who do not know her or have not met her yet, this is Rumy (or my Rumche or Rum4e), my fiancée and better half.

Posted by: mjmarble at January 31, 2008 22:27 | link | comments (1)
family, future