LOVE ONE ANOTHER
How
God helped two Catholics in Missouri find true love
"From
every human being, there rises a light that reaches straight to
Heaven, and when two souls that are destined to be together find each
other, the streams of light flow together and a single brighter light
goes forth from that united being." ~
Ba'al Shem Tor
The
love of Teresa Mullen, a 23-year-old early childhood special education
teacher, and her fiancé Ken Huxel, a 26-year-old graphic artist, is
grounded not only in the trust and friendship between them, but also
in their mutual faith in God. Here is their story as told by Teresa:
"In
February of my senior year of high school, I went on a Teens Encounter
Christ (TEC) retreat. Ken was my table's young adult leader and we
stayed friends for about two years before he finally asked me out in
March 1998. It was the first date either of us had been on and we
continue to be the only people either of us has ever dated.
"Last
April, Ken took me to Immaculate Conception Parish in Augusta, Mo.
where we hold the TEC retreats. He had been teasing me for quite a
while about when he was going to ask me. So, when we got to Augusta,
Ken said he was bringing me here to make we wonder a little more. We
walked around and then sat by the lake. All the while, he teased me
about maybe he was going to ask me, but then he didn't. Then, we got
up to go to the car and he said he had another question 'Are you ready
to go?' I told him he was being mean.
"But,
as we were walking by the building where we have our retreats, Ken
suddenly got down on one knee and said: 'When we met, you became a
part of my life. When we started dating, you became my life. Now I
want you to be my wife.' We both cried and laughed and hugged each
other. Then we went into the little country church. We recited the
words to the song "Companions on the Journey" which we want
played at the wedding and then we kneeled in front of the altar and
prayed the Our Father. It was the perfect ending to a perfect
proposal!
"Our
wedding, which is set for December 7, 2002, will take place at
Immaculate Conception Catholic Church in Union, Mo., my home parish.
We chose purple and white to be the colors of our wedding to go along
with the liturgical colors of the Advent season in the Catholic
Church.
"Both
Ken and I believe that we are not only preparing for a wedding, but
for a miracle. We are awaiting the day that we will enter into a
covenant with God that will never be broken. We feel so blessed to
have so many friends and family who love and support us in all that we
do. We believe our love story was written by God and we intend for our
wedding and marriage to also be created by the hand of the
Master!"
