Carl and Yvonne

If ever there was a couple brought together by fate it is Yvonne and Carl.  Neither could have imagined what the future would bring, meeting by chance one Friday afternoon in 1992, in the most unromantic of settings; the factory canteen.

At the time both were working for Cadbury in Shropshire, Yvonne a stock controller and Carl an engineering contractor.  Yvonne was on her break and seeing her on her own Carl decided to take a chance and talk to her.  A big step for a stoic lad of Cumbrian farming heritage.

Later that evening, much to Yvonne’s delight, Carl turned up at her local pub and they got chatting. While Yvonne was born and bred Shropshire, Carl was the son of a beef farmer from the Cumbrian Lakes. Like so many children of farmers, Carl wanted to work away from the family farm for a while, stretch his legs and experience more of the world.

The next few years saw their relationship blossom, they were very happy and life was good. Unfortunately fate intervened. Not long after Yvonne’s 21st birthday, Carl’s Dad had a heart attack and Carl returned to the Lakes to run the family farm. Yvonne and Carl tried to continue their relationship but it became more and more difficult.  Carl couldn’t leave the farm.  It was up to Yvonne to drive the four hundred mile round trip; not easy when trying to hold down a responsible job.

One awful night in late 1994, Carl turned up unexpectedly on Yvonne’s doorstep. He was distraught. According to Yvonne, Carl’s words were “he had wronged her”. Yvonne was devastated. Carl left knowing full well how his betrayal meant the end of their relationship; it was over. He realised too late, that his actions one stupid drunken night had ended their relationship. He had lost the woman he loved deeply.

The next few years, Yvonne tried to get on with her life but never another boyfriend; it seemed she could not get over Carl or what he’d done.

May 1998, Yvonne was offered a promotion and moved to Liverpool.  Things were on the up.  Settling into her life, she met someone, fell in love and married. In the following years they had two wonderful sons; their happiness seemed complete. Unfortunately the relationship didn’t last, and in 2013 Yvonne and her children left Liverpool to start over in Shropshire once more.

What Yvonne hadn’t known was that Carl never got over Yvonne either. While she had moved to Liverpool he had revisited Shropshire several times looking for her, only to discover she had moved away and not knowing she had married. Carl returned to the Lakes despondent. He tried for years to find Yvonne but with her name change he had no way of finding her.

It was at this point serendipity interceded …

Yvonne had a new job, with a new employer, part of which was to contact clients to discuss their account. The first account Yvonne was given was Carl’s farm account! She hadn’t really paid much attention to the name or address of the client she was calling until Carl picked up the phone. Yvonne immediately realised it was ‘THAT CARL’.  Phone calls were recorded so Yvonne remained professional and courteous  while talking to him. Carl thought he recognised Yvonne’s voice, but her business like manner led him to doubt it.

Rightly or wrongly, Yvonne had noted Carls number. After much soul searching, she plucked up the courage to send Carl a text. Texting, led to phone calls and eventually they arranged to meet. Once again, Yvonne travelled to the Lakes and was met by Carl at the train station.  Seeing Carl, she instantly knew he was the love of her life: the one. Carl felt exactly the same. The stakes were much higher now; Yvonne had her children to consider. They dated again and gradually Yvonne allowed Carl to meet her boys.  Inevitably, Yvonne and her children moved to the Lakes to be with Carl on his farm.

The freezing cold Christmas Eve of 2014, Carl took Yvonne out for a romantic meal. Unbeknown to Yvonne, Carl had pre-arranged with the manager a little surprise for her. Carl managed to contain his nerves throughout the meal.

As their meal ended they were ushered to a secluded snug area of the restaurant. The manager appeared, handed a box to Carl and gave Yvonne a knowing smile before walking away. Yvonne had no idea of what was about to happen. Carl asked Yvonne to open the box and there sat a beautiful engagement ring. Neither of them said a word. Eventually, in true no nonsense farmer fashion, Carl said to Yvonne, “Will you marry me then?”.

They were married on a sunny 31st July 2015 at St Michael’s Church, Lamplugh with a reception at Hundith Hill Hotel.

Carl and Yvonne both feel strongly that it was fate that she was given that file to work on as there is no way they would have met again otherwise. I think we can all agree, fate, serendipity, whatever term you place on it, has a very strange way of working. But for Carl and Yvonne, it played a wonderful role in uniting two people who were meant to be together.