If She Says No

Okay, heres a crazy thought. What if you spend countless hours and gallons of energy planning this big, extravagant proposal… and then she says no?

Hey, take your fingers out of your ears. We know you can still hear us.

Look, its all right if you dont want to think about it, but the truth is that sometimes a girl says no. Marriage is the ultimate commitment some girls arent interested, and some guys learn this the hard way. Hopefully you wont be one of them. But if you are, dont sweat it. Before you do anything drastic (like cutting off a ring finger, or worse: someone elses), lets take a look at how to handle this scenario.

How to respond – Best Marriage Proposals

First things first. What should a guy say when a girl says, no, she wont marry him? Well, we already know what he wants to say, and it probably sounds something like this: You know what, Susan? You can go blank yourself. Actual responses may vary, of course. Not every girl answers to the name Susan. And blank certainly lacks the punch of actual, time-tested curse words. (Hey, were trying to run a family site here.) Either way, its probably not a good idea to curse a girl out. For one thing, its mean. For another, its totally immature. And besides that, what if she tells your mom? Huh? What then, smarty pants? No, if you find yourself in this unfortunate position, youre going to want to handle yourself with as much class as you can humanly muster.

So what do you do? Do you ask again… and again… and nag her like her annoying little brother? Do you pretend you didnt hear her answer, or, better yet, laugh it off and pretend you never asked? (Were reminded of the end of Superman II, when Clark Kent kissed Lois Lane for five minutes to make her forget he spent the weekend at Niagara Falls with her.) Nope. None of those options will do.

Think about it: You just offered this woman your heart and soul, your body, your flesh, and every minute of every hour of every day. Dont you think you deserve to know why shes rejected this offer? Of course you do! And more importantly, you need this information. After all, if she says no, then you probably have two different sets of expectations for your relationship. Where you go from here will very much depend on whether youre willing to work on whatever those differences may be.

So theres your answer. If she says she wont marry you, simply ask: Why? You may or may not like the answer. Theres only one way to find out. But what have you got to lose?

What to do with the ring – Best Marriage Proposals

Once upon a time, we bought a can of hairspray with a broken sprayer on it. We kept the receipt and swore wed return it. But, of course, we never did. Thats the kind of thing we tend to put off until its too late. We never send rebates in, either. Who has time for all that stuff? But a rings a little different than a broken can of hairspray. Its a bit more expensive. So whatever you do with it, dont let it sit there do it right away.

So what are your options?

Option 1 is, you can return it. Or wait a minute: Can you? Different stores have different policies. Check yours out before buying. You may only have a 15 or 30 day window to return the ring you purchased. It sounds like a lot, but time flies when youre planning a proposal. Know the policy right from the start.

Option 2: Try to sell it. If your return policy has expired, this will probably be your best bet. You may not be able to get back every dollar you paid, but it never hurts to ask. Check out your local papers classified section to get a sense of how people in your area sell rings. Or if thats not your thing, how about eBay? Believe it or not, plenty of people buy and sell rings there. In fact, as of this writing, there are 10,073 listings for wedding ring. (Though there also three listings for ghost in a jar, so take that for whatever you will.)

Option 3: Give it to charity! Okay, you probably wont do this. Still, wed be remiss if we failed to mention it. Our conscience is funny like that.

Finally, Option 4: Save the ring for somebody else. True, at the moment, the last thing you want to think about is falling in love all over again. But face it: You fell in love with the ring we helped you picked out. The thought of letting it sit there in a cold display case keeps you up at night. Why not give it a nice home?

Cheer up! – Best Marriage Proposals

No wasnt the answer you were hoping for when you asked your girlfriend to marry you. We know its not easy to cope with that answer. But whatever you do, just remember: If it wasnt meant to be, it wasnt meant to be. Theres only so much you can do about that. Besides, thats just the bad news. The good news is, it means theres someone even more perfect for you. So keep your chin up. Youll find her. And well be here to help you propose once you do!