July 3rd, 2015:
Frank and I took a trip to Alexandria Bay where the Thousand
Islands are located. We had never explored that area before, and were eager for
our turn on the Uncle Sam's boat tours. We lunched at Riverboat restaurant,
where (Frank claims) we ate the best gelato ice cream served the size of a
giant baseball - mango and passionfruit dipped in white chocolate.
We traveled up and down crystal clear, blue-green St.
Lawrence River -- the water so clean that people drink it, bathe in it, and
cook with it. The weather was crisp and cool. Everything was beautiful. We
crossed over to the Canada side and back to A-Bay; we admired every beautiful
house and estate that populated the islands. We saw large estate islands, and
also wee islands that had only one house or only a tree. We heard stories
shared by the tour guides -- how some islands were man-made to woo lovers and
potential wives, how some islands have bridges that span international waters
(Canada and USA), how in in winter the river freezes over and animals cross
from island to island like little nomadic tribes, and how some islands are so
small they only have one tree, one vegetation, and some dirt. We photographed
just about everything that I could see.
Frank suggested that we walk around the most famous of the
thousand islands: Heart Island. Formerly known as Hart Island because it was
populated by harts, the island was purchased by Mr. George Boldt, who blasted
the island's sides and reshaped it into the image of a heart -- all for his
wife who sadly died before the castle was completed. To this day, Boldt Castle
remains unfinished, as a symbol of the love and the loss that George felt on
the day he heard his wife died. The story is told that one day, the telegram
arrived announcing that all construction needed to cease -- heartbreak. The
castle remains incomplete because on the day his wife died, George lost half of
his heart, and because George's lady love was not able to live in it, no one
else would either.
Frank and I walked around that unfinished island admiring
the beautiful trees and flowers, the stone walls and the view of the St.
Lawrence River; we sat on the bench looking out at the water, and we stood on
the highest landing of the undone castle, thinking of George and his beloved
wife, feeling sad for their loss, and feeling grateful that we were together.
That day, Frank proposed. I didn't even think he would; I
was expecting it to happen somewhere fun, loud and noisy (like we often are),
perhaps during the baseball game we were planning on attending on the Fourth of
July (back in Syracuse) (because there would be fireworks, right?). Instead,
like he always does, Frank found the perfect spot with perfect timing in the
midst of Heart Island. We were standing in the dovecote of the castle, alone. I
was admiring the construction and the circular, smooth walls - trying to figure
out how to photograph the whole thing - stones and windows and the right hint
of light - without messing up the panoramic photo. Suddenly, he was on one knee
(how did he get there?!), with this ring box pointed at me, looking a bit
embarrassed. Before I could think about it, he said "hurry up and say
yes" - turning bright red because someone might see this moment.
For someone who likes to take photos of everything, I don't
have even one photo of us taken on that day. Frank refused to have his photo
taken. I have a strange selfie-like photo of half my face and half of his
blurry face as he turned away from the camera. The only photo I have to
commemorate our proposal on Heart Island was of our two feet - a little worn
and weary, not so pretty, but side by side.
Click HERE to visit us at our wedding website. 15 days to go!!
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