Memory Lane

On Sunday morning in church Pastor Kenoyer mentioned something about when he and his wife first got together and how she was the one who pursued him first. I found this rather amusing and for a very brief moment was thinking back to the very beginning of the Amy & Mike story. It seems like it was just yesterday. I actually wish it was just yesterday because that would mean we were just beginning college and I would LOVE to do those 4 years again. Such fun times that I didn't make the most of at the time. Anyway, let me share the story of how Mike & I came to be.

It was a mid-October Saturday morning of our freshman year and I was asleep in my dorm room. We were attending Mount Vernon Nazarene College (now University) and there were strict rules about boys being on the floors of the girls dorms and vice versa. There were designated times when you were allowed to be in the rooms of the opposite sex. Doors must be open at all times and the RAs would be walking the floors keeping their eyes open for any inappropriate behavior. This particular Saturday was NOT one of those designated times.

My room phone rang (this was before cell phones were popular and before they were small.) I sleepily answered it and it was a "friend" of mine. He informed me that he had been on a bike ride with one of his friends and that they were now in my dorm lobby trying to locate the girlfriend of his friend. It was Sweetest Day and the friend wanted to give a rose to his girlfriend. The phone to her dorm room kept ringing and nobody was answering. They wanted me to go over there and see if she was in or around her room.

I got up out of bed and went to the lobby. I remember exactly what I was wearing- navy blue leggings and a black MVNC t-shirt. My LONG, permed hair was free from hair accessories and I was wearing my glasses. I greeted my friend and he introduced me to his bike-riding buddy. The friend was pretty good looking except for this rediculous mustache. (It wasn't as bad as the mustache on the guy in the video we've been watching in Sunday School the past four weeks though.) I tried to make small talk with this new person but he didn't pay much attention to me. He really just wanted me to go find his girlfriend.

So, I went to the other side of the dorm, went to the second floor, knocked on her door, and she didn't answer. I looked in a few rooms nearby and decided that she wasn't there. When I went back down and returned to the lobby where I had left the guys we all happened to notice that the girlfriend was walking up the sidewalk to the dorm. I said goodbye to the boys and headed back to my room.

A few weeks later when I joined my friend for lunch in the cafeteria the bike-riding buddy- aka MIKE- was sitting there having lunch also. I sat down and tried to be friendly and flirt but Mike didn't give me the time of day. (Good, Mike!! Being faithful to his girlfriend.) I thought Mike must have thought I was an idiot.

Fast forward THREE months. It is now January 1996. My friend didn't return to college. That's another story and not important to this blog post. I only mention it to share that I was told if I wanted to contact that friend I had to put any letters into an envelope that was from Mike Murphy. (SOOOOO childish. I was only 18 at the time and not thinking. I would be ashamed of this story except that it had a wonderful ending.)

I saw Mike in the cafeteria and quickly reminded him of who I was- Sweetest Day, etc. I explained the whole sending my letter sneakily thing and he said that he'd fill out envelopes for me any time I wanted. Just let him know. I learned shortly after that day that Mike's girlfriend had also not returned to college in January and that they were broken up.

I am SOOOOOO happy to say that I NEVER sent one letter to that friend of mine. Within a few weeks of approaching Mike about the letter thing I was certain that I would MARRY him. I told my sisters friends in the cafeteria (hmmm... lots of stuff is happening in the cafeteria in this story), "See that guy over there?? I'm going to marry him." (Wow... that sounds an awful lot like Alison. Now I know where she gets it. ha.)

It was the last week of January and I really wanted to get to know Mike but he was SOOOOO cute and hung out with popular people and I was just a regular girl. Not really beautiful. Not popular. I never thought he would pay any attention to me. And if you remember a few paragraphs ago I said that I tried to flirt with Mike and he blew me off. :( Thankfully I was determined. :)

January had been a real growth in my life spiritually. It is in hard times that we grow. I didn't want to fool around with meaningless relationships and have my heart broken again. I wanted to be serious. I wanted to focus on the Lord and deepen relationships with my friends AND hopefully find a husband. After all, I only went to college because I didn't know what else to do. All I ever really wanted was to get married and have children. (And serve God, of course.)

Before I could totally be head-over-heals for Mike I had to know more about him- specifically his major. I would only pursue Mike if he was a religion major. How could I find this out?? Our only mutual friend was gone. Ah ha! I know what to do. I will ask one of my friends to call him, make up a fake name for herself, and just ask him straight out what his major was. He'd never know it was me. lol (I was now 19 so should I have been acting so immature?? Let's just say yes so I feel okay about this. lol)

I got my friend Trisha to do the job. :) She dialed his 4-digit number, told him her name was Betty Sue, and that she had a friend who was interested in him and wanted to know what his major was. Guess what it was????? Yep. RELIGION. WOW!! Of all of the majors he could have chosen, he chose religion. I was SOOOOO excited.

There were a few more phone calls just like that one so I could gather more information. I think Mike enjoyed the chase. He seemed eager to supply any information we wanted. Finally mid- February we decided to reveal my identity. I don't think Mike was too surprised as I had started saying hello to him more often and had been talking to him in the cafeteria every day. (There's the cafeteria again.) Mike said he would call me and that we could go out sometime. I couldn't tell if he really meant it or if he was just being nice.

One evening my BFF was hanging out in my room and her roommate came and got her. SHE had a phone call from Mike. WHAT????? Why was he calling her?? It wasn't good news. He told her that he had only been out of a relationship for 2 months and that he was changing colleges and didn't really want to start anything up. BUT if I still wanted to go out with him, we could go out as friends.

Whatever! I had enough friends. I didn't need another FRIEND! I was mad and sad and hurt and disappointed. :(

Two days later he asked me out to a movie. (Two If By Sea- STUPID!!) Of course I went. The next day we went to a movie on campus (The Parent Trap.) We pretty much hung out every day for the next 2 weeks until finally on March 2, 1996 he asked me to be his girlfriend. (He must have forgotten what he told my BFF.)

We got engaged on October 1, 1996 in a practice room in the MVNC chapel. I was practicing for a piano test and he was in there listening to me play. The rest is history!

Oh, and he never changed colleges. ;)