Humble Handmaid

“Wait–so I’m engaged now?!” — An amazing treasure from my past :)

Humble Handmaid

I wrote this on May 7, 2007, right after Michael proposed to me. I love Facebook for keeping this treasure for me!

This is such a huge, huge treasure for me–especially since our second anniversary is coming up on August 8th. Enjoy my newly-engaged, blissful writing, as well as the pictures and comments by our friends 🙂

* * * * * *

Thank you to all of my wonderful friends for all of your congratulations on my engagement!

I am still pretty shocked at having gotten proposed to last Wednesday night, but I am so, so happy :). Here are the details that so many of you have been asking me for!

First of all, the entire “Praise and Worship and Desserts!” night at Christ the King was a way to get me there so that Michael could propose to me. Co-conspirators with Michael were: Julie Ginther, Lauren Orillion, Jason Romero and my mom. Praise and worship/prayer/adoration is one of Michael’s and my favorite things to do together, and I couldn’t ask for another place I would have rather been. Christ the King has and will always have (especially now!) a special place in my heart. 

After I finished tutoring on Wednesday night, I headed over to Michael’s, where he had cooked a yummy dinner for me. He even dressed nice for me (he knows I like when he does that). We then headed over to CtK around 7:25pm. When we got to the church, we went straight into the pew and prayed and sang for a while. Sometime in the middle of all of this, Michael tapped me on the shoulder and handed me a little microphone. He told me that Julie had just handed it to him and wanted me “to make an announcement” for her about “going after this to the Activity Center” to have desserts. Then something about “seals.” I couldn’t hear him very well and was pretty confused, so I just ended up putting the microphone down in front of me and not worrying about it. I figured I would just ask Lauren whenever I stood up what I supposed to do.
Michael was really intense in the church. He had my hand in a tight hold and asked me if I would pray with him for a minute. He was sweating a lot and his hands were cold and clammy. First of all, it was cold in the church, and second of all, his hands are always warm and dry. I attributed all of these strange things to (and I quote my actual, honest thoughts on this) “the Holy Spirit grabbing hold of his heart about something.”
A little while later, after a song I later learned was called “Set me as a Seal,” he told me it was time to go up and do the announcement. I was kind of annoyed at having to interrupt everyone’s praise and worship with a desserts announcement, since I was pretty sure that they had gotten the same tons of reminder e-mails about the event that I had gotten. So, we got up and I slipped around behind Michael to run back and talk to Lauren about what I was supposed to say. She was cool as a cucumber, but not too clear. Before I finished talking to her, Michael came and took my arm, telling me that he would just talk and not to worry. I wanted to sit down at that point because I didn’t see why I had to attract any more attention to myself and why there needed to be two announcers. I just wasn’t getting it. (Maybe that’s because I am not fazed by weirdness or spontaneity as much anymore since dating Michael Franco!) However, I just put on a smile and followed him up there.
Michael led me up to the front and started talking. And he started talking about us meeting at camp last summer, and about how much I have inspired him to be a man of God, and about how I am to him a pure and holy woman of Mary …… and how he would like to spend the rest of his life with me…
At this point, my heart started beating very fast and I kind of started to black out a little. I just remember a big gasp from the crowd as he got down on one knee in front of me and took a little black box from his pocket and waited (poor Michael!) about 10 seconds for me to nod “yes” and put a gorgeous ring on my finger. I think it was about 6-10 seconds of speechlessness. I was so shocked that I couldn’t say what OF COURSE I was going to say! (I didn’t actually SAY yes until Friday, when I realized I hadn’t done so yet!) So, I just nodded and burst into tears.
After that, I turned back to the crowd and spotted my entire family and Michael’s entire family standing up in the back row. I started crying VERY hard then! Each of them filed up to me with a single red rose, and my mom and Michael’s mom each had a white rose for me.
I later learned that when I had gone back to talk to Lauren, I had been five feet away from the row that my family was in, and I could have seen them if (a) I hadn’t been so oblivious that anything was going on and (b) if it hadn’t been so dark in the church and (c) if they hadn’t all been ducking deep down in their chairs!
I am still letting things sink in, but I am so happy to have found the amazing guy that God has prepared for me in his will for my life. I am blessed so abundantly with all of you, my friends, and I just want to thank you again for all of your prayers and congratulations.

Nope, my roommates can’t believe it either!
Written over a year ago · Comment · Like

    • Rivers Berryhill it sounds so much better when you say it babe! I’m so happy for you two! 🙂

      May 8, 2007 at 9:39pm · Like · 

    • Josh Clayton wow, that is beautiful. that literally just made my day. Erin, I am stoked beyond measure for you both. That is an awesome man you have there. Best wishes to you both. i know that by the grace of God, you two will have an awesome life together!

      May 9, 2007 at 10:41am · Like · 

    • Ashley Herrick Beautiful, Erin. Just beautiful 🙂

      May 9, 2007 at 1:38pm · Like · 

    • Jenay Olivia Franco Congratulations fellow Franco girlfriend! Oh wait, now you’re a Franco fiance! I guess we won’t be able to say it anymore 🙂 Best wishes!! ps. now we REALLY need to have dinner at your parents house!

      May 9, 2007 at 4:18pm · Like · 

    • Sarah ‘Pole’ Perich Erin that is such a beautiful story. I am so happy to hear that you found someone who appreciates and loves you for the wonderful person you are. You have always been a kind hearted person- even feeding me in the middle of the day when I hadn’t been able to get anything. Something so wonderful could not have happened to a more beautiful person.

      May 9, 2007 at 7:27pm · Like · 

    • Christa Courville That is one of the best proposal stories EVER!! Congratulations!! 🙂

      May 10, 2007 at 2:15am · Like · 

    • Bro Kevin Piper Congrats, that is so romantic! I am so happy for the both of you. I hope God blesses you both for the future.

      May 10, 2007 at 4:17pm · Like · 

    • Sarah Ault so that is officially the coolest/holiest/most romantic engagement story i have ever heard in my life. i mean really, i am sooooooooooooo flipping excited for the both of you and i know that you will have a happy and holy life together!! you are in my prayers and i miss you very much! congrats again!

      May 10, 2007 at 5:55pm · Like · 

    • Jonathan Finney Wow, Erin!!! I’m so happy for you and Michael. You both have been incredible examples of Christ’s love to me, and I’m so fortunate that I’ve been able to get to know you. You are awesome, and I can’t wait until the wedding. You’re such a wonderful Christian woman, and you deserve nothing less than a holy man to spend the rest of your life with!

      May 12, 2007 at 8:46pm · Like · 

    • Catherine Robinson Amazing! Congratulations…I am thrilled for you both!!!

      May 14, 2007 at 5:03pm · Like · 

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