More Excerpts From My Story

"If I believed in fate, then I would have thought that Jacob and I were destined to be together. For a time I did believe this to an extent-- it certainly seemed as though the universe pushed us into each others' paths several times. And it was fun to think that he was the “one.” I guess for a long time, he WAS the one.


Looking back on it now, Crystal could have very well ended up with Jacob herself (well-- considering their personalities it probably never would have developed much). She came to me all in a twitter one day about these two boys in her ward. Her dilemma? One was cute and one was funny-- she didn’t know which to pursue.

‘Tell me all about the cute one,’ I asked, trying to get a good grip on the situation.
‘Well, his name is Hugh, he has dark hair and he is really good looking and he is from Ireland...’
‘Stop right there!! Ask him out!’

I didn’t need to hear about the “funny one.” After all, I was picturing Hugh Grant, accent and all. It didn’t take much work to convince her and Crystal started dating Hugh.

One week or so later, Crystal made an announcement. ‘I want to set you up on a blind date and you can double with Hugh and me.’ Never before having blind dated, I was skeptical.
‘Ok....who do you have in mind?’
‘Well, Hugh has this roommate that I think would be perfect for you!’
All at once it hit me.
‘No way,’ I exclaimed, ‘There is NO WAY I am going on a date with the funny one that you rejected for Hugh.’

After much persuading and convincing that he would be an amazing fit for me and he really wanted to go out with me, I finally succumbed-- more to get Crystal to shut up about it than because I really wanted to go.

In the end, all the begging was worthless. The “funny one” bailed on the date last minute. He didn’t break my heart; I was free to spend the evening with my roommate and one of her childhood friends who was *darling,* attending the Airforce Academy and showed up at our apartment with a few smoking friends.
‘Katie,’ I whispered as soon as they walked in, ‘I am going to marry a man in uniform.’ Famous. Last. Words.

Shortly after "the funny one" cancelled the date he had apparently so ardently desired, BYU-Idaho was throwing a Halloween carnival. Crystal and I both love Halloween, but for completely different reasons. Crystal would love to be Edgar Allen Poe. She believes in ghosts and hauntings and is enthralled by scary movies and anything supernatural. I am a pansy. Once, during a scary movie, I was lying on Crystal’s floor with my hands covering my face so I didn’t have to see anything happening, while Crystal sprawled on her bed soaking in every jumpy moment.  We got to the part of the movie where all goes silent for an agonizingly long time and then someone pops out and the music flares up in a crescendo; even though I could only hear what was happening, Crystal and I both screamed so loud the neighbors down the street probably heard us. We did, however, scream for different reasons-- I bellowed because of the movie; Crystal shrieked because, out of nowhere, at the very climax, I went flying from the floor, clear over her, and came crashing down on the other side of the bed to bury my head completely in the stack of pillows.

She still makes fun of me for that.

Despite my hatred for creepy flicks, haunted houses and pretty much anything designed to freak you out, Halloween is still my favorite. Although the candy is a nice perk, it’s not even the chocolate that excites me. Something appeals to me about dressing up; children and adults alike can leave normalcy completely, be absolutely silly, or get glammed out and society finds it acceptable-- at least for this one season.I adore dressing up and appreciate the brilliancy of a witty costume.

That year, neither of us opted to be witty in our costume choices-- we were going for smoldering (as much as our mormon standards would allow, anyway). Decked out as a sexy pirate (Crystal) and an enchanting witch (or so I thought I was) we hit the hopping town of Rexburg. The carnival was fun, but we were soon disenchanted with the lack of single men begging for our numbers and decided to call it a night. On the way home, Crystal wanted to stop by Hugh’s to show off her outfit. Knowing that our other option was to watch a scary movie, I was more than eager to swing by-- besides, I wanted to meet this Irish stud.

When Hugh walked into the living room of their apartment, two thoughts simultaneously jumped into my head. The first was, ‘Oh my! Certainly not Hugh Grant!’ The second, ‘If he is the hot one....I am SO glad that I didn’t go on a date with the funny one!’ As we chatted with Hugh, other roommates wandered in and out of the apartment, popping into and out of our conversation. We had been there for quite awhile when a lump under a blanket on the couch started moving around and Jacob emerged. I noticed three things-- his ridiculous Hawaiian shirt, a mop of dark curly hair and the strangest shaped and very prominent cheek bones that I had ever seen.

And then he smiled and started talking to me. Within minutes my stomach ached from laughing. He was witty, charming and smart-- and he made me feel like I was the only one in the room that mattered.
‘You are the cutest witch I have ever seen,’ Jacob said as we left to go, ‘and I would love to take you out on a date.’

Crystal overheard and before I even had time to properly say, ‘Yes’ they had arranged a double date to watch a scary movie together in the boys’ lounge.

‘I knew you would be perfect for each other!’ was all Crystal could say for the next two days. I had a date with the funny one after all.

Sometimes I fall into the “what-if” game. What if Crystal had gone after Jake instead of Hugh? What if I had dressed up like a scary witch instead of a cute one? What if we had gone on a blind date and I felt like the relationship was forced instead of him charming me by asking me out personally? What if I liked scary movies and we had rushed home to pop in “The Ring” instead of stopping by Hugh’s? How would my life be different now?  

But I am learning that the questions and possibilities are endless, and asking them won’t change the truth. No matter how many circles I run around in now, at the end of October 2004, I found myself on the first date with my future husband."