50 Men Reveal The Exact Moment That Made Them Want To Marry Their Woman

In my first week as licensed as a paramedic I had a two year old die on me. When I got off work, I drove to my girlfriend's place and told her about my day. I was pretty numb at the time, trying to process this kids death despite all my efforts. I laid down on her couch, and she just wrapped her arms around me and laid with me for 3-4 hours as I tried to process. She didn't push or ask lots of questions, just laid their quietly and held me. I slowly was able to talk my way through it, and then the tears started. She cried with me. I felt the whole world was so dark and ugly, but she was my island of light. Started saving up for a ring that week, and asked her to marry me 6 months later. In September we celebrate our 5 year wedding anniversary. I'm still a paramedic, and she's still my island.

When I first told my father that I was dating someone new, he jokingly asked, "What's her name? What does she do? What's her bra size?"

I told her about it, hoping to prepare her for his sense of humor, and she thought it was hilarious. The first time they met she introduced herself by saying, "Hi I'm Stephanie! I'm in college and I'm a B-cup."

My father was horrified, my mother was laughing hysterically, and I was in love.

I was 18 and just gotten out of a dental appointment where 2 of my wisdom teeth were pulled out. I was drooling, stains of blood all over my shirt and it was the summertime. My gf at the time was 16, took what little money she had from her allowance, bought me a box of ice cream and biked 25 minutes just to deliver that box of ice cream and see how I was doing. With blood stains all over, she still gave me that look of love and planted a kiss on me. That was almost 20 years ago and I still can't imagine having a happier life without her in it.

Getting married next month. She came over 2 weeks into us dating with a batman costume for my cat. She put my cat in the costume and then chased the cat around the apartment singing "DA-NUH-NUH-NUH BATCAT!"

There was never a doubt in my mind after that.

Just happened to me about 2 weeks ago.

No lie, I was washing my hands in the bathroom and it hit me out of left field. I knew right then and there I wanted to marry her.

Got the ring yesterday, wish me luck!

EDIT: SHE SAID YES!!!!

On or about our second date my future spouse was on call for her medical job. Her beeper when off (dates the story) and we rushed to the hospital where I got to watch her handle a trauma case. I saw confidence, expertise, calmness under pressure, kindness and caring and a few other desired traits shine forth and with that added to her package I knew she was someone I could respect for the rest of my life. We celebrate our 24th anniversary this fall.

The day she took off work to help me go through a dumpster. I had accidentally thrown my keys in the trash while cleaning out my car.

Edit: We found them 2 hours later.

My best friend and I took forever to realize that we each were infatuated with one another. Embarrassingly so.

Finally, we started dating and we moved in together. Everything was perfect. I've never been big on the idea of marriage, but laying in bed together one night I realized that the thought of not having her in my life was unbearable and I didn't want to ever let her slip away. We had only been together for about 6 weeks at that point, but I knew I wanted her to be mine.

She died a couple weeks ago, and I never got to ask her to marry me.

Edit: Wow. I never expected nor really desired this much attention. I just wanted to vent a little while I was on break at work. Honestly I have some anxiety about all of this attention. I'll try and get back to everyone.

To answer the most common question, she died in a car accident. I don't want to post a lot of detail publicly, but if anyone really gives a s**t, PM and ask and I'll share more.

It's been really hard to deal with this. I cannot put into words how important she was to me. For someone like myself, if the username didn't give it away, I don't particularly enjoy most people. She was my absolute favorite. The best person in my life. The joy we had for each other was immeasurable and everyone who knew us together knew we were soul mates. That's where all the feelings of pointlessness are stemming from.

I've posted this before but since you asked:

When I was a young lad I had bought a pair of swords. Now for some reason I still had them, but when my now-wife agreed to come over my place I decided to hide them in a storage closet because why would any grown man have these.
So, a while down the line she was looking for something in said closet when I heard "what the hell? You have swords? WHY ARE YOU HIDING THESE?!"
I was prepared to be mocked mercilessly, when instead she handed me one and then started swinging. It was about that time that I realized I was going to marry her.

When she was meeting my parents, she put together an outfit and asked "What do you think? Does this say 'hey parents, look at me, I'm awesome,' or 'I slept with your son on the first date?'"

No one is going to see this... but oh well.

This isn't flashy, it's not going to make an amazing Hollywood movie.

The moment I KNEW I was going to ask her to marry me, was the moment I accepted that I could live without her. I just didn't want to. It was that moment that I recognized being with her was a mutual choice, not a dependency. I had the self-awareness to know I could lead a happy life. But s**t, this woman made everything happier.

I am one of the most genuinely lucky people, I know. I am not the wealthiest, best looking, or most popular. But I deeply, deeply love my wife. She is, the center of my universe. It's not because she's given me this Hollywood fairy-tale of what marriage is " supposed to be like". It's because she's given me something real, something tangible, and something I can fight for. Through the ups and downs, the arguments and laughter, the sickness and health - I realize that I may not always like her, but I deeply love her. And that love is not based on ONE thing, but all things. And it's amazing when you see the woman you love day after day, year after year, and you just keep seeing the same person you first met.

I s**t you not. Every single day, I have THIS revelation. No matter how amazing or frustrating of a day I have. Every day I would ask her to marry me and every day I would marry her again.

Wife - if you ever read this. Here is another confession I make before reddit. The internet is forever.

As is my love for you.

- Update just because - tonight I went home and hugged my wife. And I held on as long as she let me. She smiled, swatted my butt and said "good game!" Then she started humming while holding our kid. Humming is how my wife expresses a moment of bliss. To all the people that took the time to read my post. To those kind enough to comment. I humbly offer you my deepest thanks. You, people of Reddit, gave my wife some happiness today. You own that. You made my day. Thank you.

Things were going really well, and I was saying to myself "If this keeps up, I think next summer I'll pop the question."

Then, my mother had a stroke. We were all sitting in the waiting area outside the ICU, because only 2 people were allowed in at a time. It was my now-wife's birthday, and a Wednesday, and she didn't hesitate to take the day off to sit with me and my family.

I went to visit my father at home, and she came with me. Her Italian instincts kicked it, and she brought a load of groceries and a lasagna with her.

My father was a mess at the hospital, and it fell on me and my siblings to speak with the doctors and make plans.

I would get home, and pour myself some bourbon. She made me dinner, and just sat with me while I silently sobbed.

It wasn't about how great we were when things were good, it was about how perfect she was when things were bad.

I bought the ring 2 months later.

Edit: Forgot - this all happened just before Christmas. Since my mother was still in the hospital Christmas Eve, I got a last minute reservation to my father's favorite restaurant. GF was with her family, but we got to the table to find a note that she had called ahead to buy us 2 bottles of wine.

I've been married just over a week, so I've been telling this story a lot lately.

We were three days into a month-long backpacking trip in southeast Asia. We're staying in a seedy hotel in Bangkok and she gets a bad case of food poisoning - it's coming out of both ends for 24 hours.

I, of course, am now designated as her nurse. I'm refilling her water bottle, getting her soup from the restaurant outside, keeping her company and, most importantly, emptying the trash bin she keeps puking into.

After one trip to empty her vomit bucket, I come back into the room and she's asleep. I looked at her and thought to myself "I'm not even bothered by this. I'd do anything for her. This is the woman I'm going to marry."

She's a disgusting barf fairy, but she's my disgusting barf fairy. Zero regrets.

Edit: For all those asking, we had a Jewish wedding, so no vows. I did get to break the s**t out of a glass, though!

The very first time I laid eyes on her! We married after going steady for 15 months and remained married for 56 years, until her death 3 years ago. Blue eyed blonde and a ten in my book. Miss her terribly.

I got mad and yelled at her for some stupid s**t because I had been in a toxic relationship prior to meeting her and I thought that what couples did (scream & argue). I expected her to yell back at me, but she just stared at me for a moment and asked if I was done. I said I was and she proceeded to explain to me that people who love one another do not treat each other that way. We can disagree with one another, but there's no reason to be mean. "If we're going to be together, please don't be mean to me again." That was 26 years ago (we've been married 25 years).

Edit: thank you guys so much for the kind replies and messages, but I have to confess something; I'm still an a*****e, just not to her! ;P

We got really high, got in bed, and pretended we were pieces of chipotle chicken in a blanket quesadilla.

We're getting married in January.

We had a long distance relationship. We lived 3 to 4 hours away from each other the entire time we dated. We had met at a concert and traded emails and MSN info (classic). We emailed and chatted everyday, sometimes for hours. We poured our hearts out about our fears and dreams. I'd go visit her every other weekend, and she'd come once and a while my way.

About 3 or 4 months into doing this, I'm at home chilling at home playing some game in my room. My dad calls up the stairs that I got a package in the mail. So I, confused, come walking down the stairs. And there she was. She came up to visit as a surprise. Without thinking, I instinctively ran to her and hugged her and lifted her and spun her a bit. And I felt in my heart a wholeness. Like holding her filled in something I was missing. I knew then that I never would let her go (metaphorically speaking). Been married over 9 years, and I still get that feeling when I hug and kiss her.

A few months into dating, she had a breakdown (at the time, she had been diagnosed as bipolar) where she spent a week in the psych ward of a local hospital.

The day she went in, I came to visit her, and she pleaded with me to just leave and be done with her. It wasn't an absurd thing to suggest. After all, we were young (me 20, her 22), had only been dating for 3 months, and dealing with legit mental illness in a partner is a big thing to sign up for.

But not only did I not even for a second consider her suggestion, I knew in that moment of decision that this was the real f*****g deal.

I proposed two months later. We were married just a little over a year after we started dating, and tomorrow is our 14th anniversary. She hasn't had an episode since, which we both count as a blessing. But even if it does come again, I'll be there.

It was our first date. It was the last day of classes before Thanksgiving break, she was supposed to drive home after class. It was just a coffee date that stretched out for several hours. It was just comfortable. Conversation flowed. I wasn't worried about saying anything dumb or silly. We were completely ourselves. It culminated in a shy kiss in her car before she left to drive home.

Her Mom knew why she was late, just by her mood. I went back to my apartment and talked to my roommate. I told him there was something special about this girl. We'll be celebrating our 10 year anniversary this summer.

This may be a bit unusual, but the way she could toss an insult around. I tend to tease playfully, and she could always toss banter right back. We ended up insulting each other so much that my friend had to assure his girlfriend that we were only kidding and didn't hate each other. It was great.