Back in 2001, we were planning H’s 40th birthday party at the North House Folk School in Grand Marais. We invited everyone. Twelve years earlier, we’d had a small wedding ceremony, with 13 people in attendance. In the years that followed, H would sometimes say that we should renew our vows in front of our friends. Her singing group would headline the show. They asked if I would do a short Flash Meridian performance. She probably thought I would do The Universe again, but I came up with a surprise. I hired an officiant. Flash Meridian was announced, and I called H back to the stage. I got down on one knee and asked if she would marry me again. She had no idea I was going to do this. I’d even had rings made. She replied, “In a minute”, which I took as a yes.

I had no clue that I had put her on the spot. Her boyfriend was in the audience. Another guy who I knew liked her, walked out at this point. A couple of weeks later, she told me she wanted a divorce, because there was someone else she wanted to marry. They got engaged as soon as our divorce was final. If she’d just told me, I would have been ok. I would have performed The Universe again. I found the VHS tape last night. I was so oblivious that evening, and now it’s cringeworthy. Still, I’m happy. Happy that I had a surprise idea, and pulled it off rather beautifully.

This optimistic blurb appeared in Lake Superior Magazine.