The Ring

One of the last things I told Tim before he left for the Grand Canyon was, "...don't worry, you'll have me wrapped around your finger the whole time your gone." This was, of course, a reference to his wedding ring. *Doh!*

This picture may just be the very last picture of Tim with his original wedding band...

The ring is now somewhere in the murkiest of murky waters at the bottom of the Grand Canyon.

Everyone wore their life jackets like diapers, and floated down the Little Colorado river. Due to recent flash floods the water strangely resembled the Chocolate River in Willa Wonka! Albeit not quite as tasty.

I have some experience going down the Nantahala River in North Carolina like this. I remember it as one of my favorite parts of rafting! Just you and the water... a little scary, but very exhilarating!

The first time was so much fun that they hiked back up and went down a couple more times!

Everyone was wearing their rings without a second thought...

Tim's foot got stuck while climbing out of the water the last time.

He reached down to loosen his shoe... and his ring slipped off into the water! As you can see it would have quickly gotten swept out of sight!

Tim had many trip-mates in the freezing cold water looking for it.
They finally pulled him out. He had to let it go.
The Ring was *lost*.

Tim was feeling pretty crummy afterwards.
Until a little while later they saw a 'sun dog'...

A giant circular rainbow in the sky above them...
A Ring!!

I never even knew such a thing existed!!
I image seeing it in person was a *spectacular* event for everyone there...
It held a special meaning for Tim though.
It put him at peace.
The ring was still with him.

If there was ever any question, THIS is how I *know* that Tim and I are soul mates...The Ring AND the whole Hurricane thing. We survived our wedding weekend in peak Hurricane Season. Before the big event, we entertained the idea of having the wedding at Shell Point beach (just blocks from my parents house). We opted to have it in Jacksonville instead and stay close to home. On the day of our wedding, a Hurricane hit Shell Point and at least 8 feet of water flooded the very beach we considered! If we had planned the wedding in Shell Point, it would have been canceled due to Hurricane! I was blissfully unaware of all of this during the wedding and it went beautifully!! THEN... as our honeymoon cruise approached we watched as 'Tropical Storm Emily' became 'Hurricane Emily' and then proceeded to head directly toward our cruise route! We were sure our honeymoon cruise would be canceled, but within the week that 'Hurricane EMILY' hit, we were there. On the same ground the rain fell. That Hurricane was MY Hurricane. No one can tell me any differently! I'm also convinced this "sun dog" was meant for Tim. No Lie...we are somehow tied into the Universe!

More to come from the Grand Canyon soon!