when i saw this bracelet i couldn't help but remember an experience we had right after we were married.
the wedding and party was over, and we had just woken up in a hotel in la jolla.
marcus had yet to tell me where or what we were doing for our honeymoon, but i had kind of assumed that since we had a destination wedding, we would just spend our time exploring california or maybe do one of those 'cruises to nowhere...
little did i know that marcus had a much grander plan worked out, so when i rolled over for our first morning snuggle, and he couldn't wipe the smile off his face, i asked him what was going on, and he asked me if i wanted him to tell me where we were headed, i of course anxiously said yes, and almost before i said yes, he blurted out, "HAWAII! We have a flight this afternoon!"
At first I didn't believe him. While living in Idaho, all we talked about while dealing with that endless wind and snow was how we wished we were somewhere tropical and sandy. I constantly dreamed of being in hawaii together and now it was really happening.
I jumped out of bed and started throwing my things in a suitcase, as we talked about what we would do there and where we would stay.
(Marcus' mom was the sweetest and helped Marcus find the best deals at the most beautiful of places.)
on our way to the airport, i remembered that my family was having lunch on the beach, and since we hadn't eaten and it was on our way, we decided to stop by, say goodbye and grab some grub.
we did so, and were on our way to LAX with PLENTY of time to spare.
....until we hit LA traffic. Something we gravely underestimated.
So we sat there, fingers and toes crossed.
We actually made it to the airport in time, but have you ever been to LAX?
the signage is insane and if you get one thing wrong, you're lost til the end of time.
and parking? forget about it. it's not possible.
at least practically.
after many stressful minutes--which seemed like hours, we conquered the impossible and found some parking.
with our bags in hand, we ran like the wind to catch the shuttle, but when we went to check-in, we were told that we missed the check-in time by 10 minutes and there was no way we could make it through security to make our flight.
if you could have seen marcus' face. it was, well, tragic.
i asked if there was a later flight we could catch and she told me that the next flight wasn't until tomorrow and it was full, so our best chance was the following afternoon, and there was still no guarantee.
at this point marcus' and mine's differing personalities came out.
he was traumatized about all this, i on the other hand, was laughing.
if i knew we had lost our chance at going all together, i would surely be crying, but knowing that we WOULD in fact be able to get there, just a little later than planned, i was fine and chalked it up to our first adventure in marriage.
he being the planner of all this, wanting everything to go perfectly, was less amused.
once i convinced him that there was nothing we could do to get our way past security, we headed to a local mcdonald's to use wifi and find some place to stay the night.
i told marcus to find the absolute cheapest place around--as long as i could smell the room before we payed, i was okay with staying at the sleaziest motel for the evening.
he, again, was traumatized that he was taking his new bride to a motel on night two of their honeymoon.
i, again, was laughing.
we called the hotel we had booked in hawaii that night and got a refund, and headed off to the first nearby $30/night motel we found.
The lady at the counter had soap operas from india streaming on the tv, and i don't think she ever looked at us when we talked, until i asked if she could open up the room and let me smell it first--that got her attention, but she complied.
the decor was horrendous, not one thing in the room matched, unless you count nothing being touched since 1974 as matching--and not vintage in a good way... the bed squeaked, there was a mysterious hair in the bathtub, and the light flickered a bit, but it wasn't stinky, so i said,
"we'll take it."
marcus' jaw dropped, and for the first time during this ordeal--he laughed.
as we went out to the car to get our bags, i looked up, and noticed that over our motel door, and ours only, there was a lucky horseshoe, and again, i laughed at the irony.
when we got out to the car, i found our camera tucked under a blanket and realized that had we made our flight, we would have gotten to hawaii without our camera--and for me, someone who has a deep obsession with capturing all of life's moments, especially ones that are once in a lifetime, i almost starting crying immediate tears of gratitude for missing that flight. i looked up at that horseshoe and laughed instead.
that night we said a prayer that the next day would go smoothly and that we would make the earliest flight.
we did.
at the last minute, they called our names, and we were ecstatic.
we then met the world's sweetest flight attendant that treated us like honeymooning royalty and told us all about her life, marriage, and children. she gave us beautiful advice and extra treats on the plane.
i couldn't help but think we wouldn't have met this lady and had such a nice flying experience had we made our original flight. and again, i laughed about that lucky horseshoe.
when we got to hawaii, it was the most beautiful part of the day, i got to have my first glaces of the great state in the daylight, rather than late at night, like our original flight would have provided.
it was a visual moment i will never and can never forget.
my knees nearly gave out. that place has my heart.
plus we had most of the day to explore on our first day, rather than go right to bed.
we love to remember this story. it really was our first adventure as a married couple--there have been many since then, and we've learned from every one of them.
i guess what i'm saying is, we never know why things happen the way they do, but take it as it comes, look for the good, and a happy life you'll have.
also, remember that LAX is insane and plan accordingly.
