Most kids who grow up in small towns can’t wait to get away to the big city. But that wasn’t the case for Lindy or Eric. Lindy grew up on her family’s vineyard and farm in the small Delta town of Clarksburg and Eric grew up hiking and fishing in the Auburn foothills. When they met in the dorms at Cal Poly, they instantly knew they’d found a kindred spirit. “We met our first quarter, but we didn’t get to know one another right away,” Eric recalls. “Once we started talking we realized how much we had in common.” They even shared a connection to Lindy’s hometown. Lindy’s family had lived in the Clarksburg area for generations and Eric also had quite a bit of family there.
Lindy was eager for her family to meet her prospective suitor. So, when her parents came to visit, she introduced them to Eric. The reaction surprised her.
“My Dad, he can be a pretty protective guy. He didn’t want me to run around with a bunch of boys,” explains Lindy. “But after he met Eric he called me out of the blue and said, ‘I really like him. That’s the kind of guy I’d want you to date.’” That night, on the beach, Eric asked Lindy out. But, despite the fact that all signs seemed to be pointing to a relationship, Lindy and Eric faced a hitch. With the school year coming to an end, Eric would soon be traveling to Alaska to be a fishing guide for the summer. Not only would the couple be apart, but Eric’s remote location also made talking on the phone or emailing practically impossible.
“All he had was a satellite phone that cost $2 a minute!” Lindy remembers. “So we’d talk for a few short minutes each week and that was it.”
Still, the couple stayed together. While it wasn’t exactly serious, Lindy had a feeling that she couldn’t shake. “I met him and I was set,” she explains. “I knew right away he was special.”
When Eric returned from Alaska and the two were together again, he quickly came to the same realization. They talked about the future and marriage, but didn’t make any commitments. Then, in their second year of dating, they realized it was forever. Eric and Lindy discussed getting married right away, but eventually came to the conclusion that it would be better to wait until graduation.
Despite the wait, they never questioned their commitment. “We were confident that we would get married,” Eric says. “It sounds silly, but we had the same dream. We both love the country, animals, and that rural lifestyle. We had the same idea of moving back to Clarksburg or Auburn and having this little sustainable household, a place where we could just do our own thing.”
But when they graduated from college, their lives took a surprising turn. Lindy was offered a job at an accounting firm in San Francisco. Eric encouraged her to take the opportunity, which meant she would be moving away from San Luis Obispo – and him.
The move was a defining moment for the couple.
“Eric really supported me and pushed me, and I appreciated that,” Lindy says. “Before I met him in college I thought I could never a have a real job or move away; I was so scared of all of it…He was the one who convinced me I could do this. He believed in me.”
And Eric was impressed at how effortlessly Lindy made the transition from small town to big city.
“She really took it all in stride,” he says. “When I’m stressing out about things, Lindy is just happy and easy-going…she’s very level headed. And that’s a great fit for me.”
For a year, the couple managed the long-distance lifestyle. Eric would drive up to visit a few times a month and they’d talk on the phone. Eager to be together again, Eric began planning a Christmas proposal.
First, he set out to ask Lindy’s father for her hand in marriage, which was no small feat. Being new in their careers and far away from home, the couple didn’t see their families very often. So, when Lindy invited Eric home for her family’s annual harvest party, he knew it was his chance. “Getting her Dad alone was a challenge to say the least,” Eric recalls. “I kept offering to go with him on an errand and he kept saying, ‘No, no. You stay here and hang out with Lindy.’ Eventually her Mom caught on and said, ‘Maybe he wants to go with you.’”
Finally, in the truck, Eric told Lindy’s father of his intentions and asked for his blessing. Happily, he wished the couple his best.
Next, Eric set out to buy an engagement ring. Once again, it wasn’t an easy task. Eric’s family had a tradition of purchasing engagement rings from a particular jeweler. But with the distance, it was a challenge to select, order, and purchase the ring. “When I finally got it, I was so excited that I almost blew the surprise,” Eric says. “We were talking on the phone one night and I was admiring it and I almost said to her, ‘I’m just sitting here looking at your ring.’ I caught myself just in time!”
A few weeks later, Eric finally had the opportunity to reveal his secret – and the ring – to Lindy. He’d arranged to take her for a Christmas Eve hike along the American river. When they reached the confluence, he noted the parallel between the two rivers coming together as one and two lives being joined.
It was a romantic, sincere moment. Still, Eric couldn’t resist playing one final gag on his bride-to-be before officially sealing their engagement.
“I didn’t give her the real ring right away,” says Eric. “Back when we were first dating I had this ring made from fishing wire…One day she took it off my finger and started wearing it; she even put a fake, plastic jewel in the center of it… It broke and she asked me to fix it, but I forgot and never did.”
Now, with a proposal on his lips, Eric brought out the old fishing wire ring – complete with a new, fake plastic gemstone.
“It looked awful; it had a bunch of super glue dried on it.”
For a moment, Lindy wasn’t sure how to react,until Eric burst out laughing. He then got down on one knee, asked Lindy to be his wife, and put the real ring on her hand.
Immediately, the couple began planning. They’d always wanted to marry on Lindy’s family property. Inspired by the garden setting, Lindy selected a springtime color palette of pastels. From there, she let her wedding vendors go. “I really couldn’t be hands-on,” Lindy says. “So I told my vendors that we wanted a garden party that was really, really fun. And they ran with it.”
On the morning of May 28th, Lindy and Eric’s backyard hometown wedding had finally arrived. Unfortunately, so did the rain. Still, the easy-going bride didn’t let the inclement weather dampen her spirits. The ceremony, which was planned for her grandmother’s lawn, was quickly moved inside of the vintage party barn, proving the value of her experienced vendors.
“I actually really like the way it turned out,” Eric says. “Our immediate family sat but the rest of the guests crowded around us. It was really intimate – they were right there with us in that moment.”
After being pronounced man and wife, the newlyweds partied the night away with their guests. “That’s the best feeling,” smiles Eric. “That moment where everyone takes a deep breath, and the party starts and you just relax and soak it all in.”
While they’re currently living in San Francisco, they’re dreaming of returning to the countryside and starting a rural life, and a little family.
“We daydream about it all the time in our tiny little apartment,” Eric says. “We just can’t wait.”
Photos: Diana Miller Photography
