The Tale of the Blue Dragonfly

On the anniversary of the day Eric proposed, I thought I’d share this story:

On the first day of summer in 2004, Eric “Boot” Egger took the day off from work. After making Val breakfast in bed (which entailed getting up before Val—quite a task for Eric!!), he declared that we would be going for a walk at the College of William and Mary. Excited that he actually volunteered to go on a walk (instead of Val dragging him), Val gladly went along.

As they started down one of the paths on the beautiful campus, a blue dragonfly flew by. Eric said, “Look, a blue dragonfly. That is a good omen—this day is blessed.” Thinking it was video game speak (Eric is obsessed with Lord of the Rings), Val ignored the comment, though she thought it was quite a sentimental thing for someone like Eric to say.

Now, it is a well-known fact that Crim Dell Bridge, at the College of William and Mary, is cursed or blessed, depending on which way you look at it. The bridge is located on an obscure pathway on campus, and it is not a direct route from anywhere to anywhere. According to legend, if you cross the bridge by yourself, you will spend your days as a singleton. If you kiss someone on the bridge, you are bound to marry them—unless you throw them off the bridge, the only act that can break the “curse”. Val and Eric had never been on the bridge before, either alone or together.

Eric led the walk through various paths, meandering about. As the two made their way to an unknown path which led to the Crim Dell Bridge, Eric began getting more and more nervous. Val’s suspicions grew as Eric anxiously gulped the rest of the water in his bottle and dropped the bottle on the ground at the foot of the bridge.

“Eric! Don’t litter!” Val scolded, surprised that the “Green Republican” would leave a non-biodegradable piece of rubbish on the pristine ground.

“Nothing!” Eric erupted quickly, as if in response to an unasked question. He motioned for Val to stand on the bridge.

After a few calming breaths and a kiss on the bridge, Eric got down on his knee and very kindly proposed.

After all was said and done, the two walked across the bridge hand-in-hand. “Wow,” said Val. “I guess blue dragonflies are a good omen after all!”

As the two left the campus to go home, another blue dragonfly (the same one?) hovered in front of them for a moment before fluttering off into a summer breeze.

THE BEGINNING…