Story of two Lovebirds

(Pauline & John)

This is a brief story about how John and I met via the list. It is now the second day now we are married, the wedding, family and pictures were all wonderful, and will be sending some pics to the list once they are developed.

I myself have been on the IW list for over 3 years but John has only been on the list since the beginning of last year. I suppose John and I met, or should say, privately e mailed off the list in two manners. First I don't know if you remember all the 13th Warrior Stories I had been writing to the list, but John came into the picture as I was beginning to write the 2nd set of stories. He began to realize that I had written these stories, and asked me if I could email all the other stories he had missed. At the time John did not realize either that I was also Connor's owner, plus the SPCA rep for the movie, he hadn't made the connection yet. I at around that time too, I had written to the list regarding the failing health of my father and asking if some list members could write to him privately, because he was bed written, and my wolfies who he loves dearly couldn't visit "grandpa" because of his health. So TONS of list members wrote to dad with support letter, and John happened to be one of those people. It was then that we began to seriously write some private emails back and forth. In our conversations via email, John learned that I was born in Holland, and he being from Belgium he also new Dutch. John began writing email to dad in dutch from a Flemish priest / poet who dad had learned about when he was attending school in Holland, in his younger years of course. Dad loved reading the poetry that John sent in Dutch from this Belgium priest. So then John and I began writing back and forth regarding dad's health and giving me morel support, with the difficulties I had dealing with everything, including a messy broken marriage. John then after me sending him 13th Warrior stories and the emails to dad made the connection that I was one and the same person VBG. John is a very big fan of the 13th Warrior, so I sent him privately several pictures of the set and Connor on the set ..... which at the time were slightly illegal because the movie had not yet been aired at the theaters. I did have plans to go to Holland before meeting John, and had struck up a great friendship with my cousin in Holland, who I was planning to visit in the beginning of 2000. I had also told her over and over , long before speaking to John that I had a BIG yearning to return to Europe and that something special was waiting for me there, she thought I was crazy <BG> and didn't think I would find what I was looking for. In the fall of 1999, John and I emails became more and more personal, as he was also going through a bad marriage too and I was giving him support. We then began an occasional phone call. It was around christmas last year that I began to "fall" in love with John, and then not realizing he was beginning to feel the same. Before the new year I told John my feelings and he also felt the same for me, by this time too I had already booked my flight to Europe and planned to stay 3 months. I was making plans with my cousin, but then John and I began to make plans, but we first had to meet face to face to be certain about our feelings. After racking up a horrendous phone bill before going to Europe, I left and leaving my sister in law with the cheque book to look after my bills, of course that began tongues waggling in my family. At the time the only person I told was my mother. Well I guess the rest is history, because all worked well with our first face to face and I spent almost my full 3 months with him in Belgium but also seeing all my Dutch relatives with with and meeting several IW list members in Belgium and Holland. In May John came here to meet my family and then in August I went back to Belgium, to meet some more of his family, we then both came back to Canada and after 2 weeks John had to go back to Belgium. John went back to straighten out some money matters and in mid October he came back to Canada for good. We agreed that the opportunities for the both of us were more feasible in Canada. So now November 4th after several months of planning our marriage and future, we are now married and VERY ecstatically happy, with our wolfhound "kids" and ourselves.

Pauline & John