The proposal was perfectly fitting as some penguins court their mates by offering carefully chosen rocks before building a nest together.
SAN ANTONIO — Forget diamonds, this penguin-inspired proposal started with a rock and a whole lot of heart at SeaWorld San Antonio!
Esmaralda Chavez and Sayra Ascencio were attending a behind-the-scenes penguin encounter when things took a romantic turn. As they waddled among the penguins, Esmaralda got down on one knee to propose but instead of a ring, she held a literal rock engraved with the words, “Will you marry me?”
Shocked but touched by the gesture, Sayra said yes in a room full of penguins and SeaWorld staff.
“When you find your soul mate, it’s like a penguin, that’s your mate forever. That’s for life,” Esmaralda said. “I wanted to do something that’s going to stay with me for the rest of my life, our lives.”
The penguin-inspired proposal was perfectly fitting as some penguins court their mates by offering carefully chosen rocks before building a nest together.
“I was really surprised. I was not expecting this,” Sayra said. “I got a rock but I feel like it means more because of the way she loves penguins and the way the penguins give a rock to their soulmate forever. I feel like it meant a little bit more, a unique way, not the way everybody does it.”
SeaWorld San Antonio officials said that while not all penguins mate for life, their bonds whether seasonal or lifelong are a heartwarming reminder that love comes in many forms. Hopefully that’s true for Esmaralda and Sayra too.
