Will you marry me?

So apparently, I am set to be wedded end of next year. The boyfriend popped the question last night and I ran off crying, bemoaning the loss of single life. Even the sparkle of the diamond failed to inspire any kind of joy in me; I was despondent and catatonically devastated. It was as if I envisioned a lifetime of doom whereby I will be eternally bound by the shackles and chains of an institution called marriage. Say goodbye to freedom - the kind where you can wake up at 2 am in the morning and decide that you want to watch a chick flick. The kind where you return home after a grueling day at work and take a 2 hour nap before going out for dinner. Or the kind where you walk around the house naked. Or take a dump with the toilet doors opened. 

It is the end of that kind of freedom. 

And most certainly the beginning of responsibilities; conjugal duties, possible parental duties and other obligations that arise within the context of a marriage. I wonder if a bride goes through all these thoughts when she walks down the altar in her cupcake meringue dress? Does she shed tears of joy or sorrow? 

I may sound flippant about the whole thing, sarcastic even but the honest truth is I have never been more afraid of anything. I love him in a way that is incomprehensible and I can't possibly imagine a life without him in it. But there is also another part of me that fears the unknown - the probabilities of pregnancy, the challenges of being with someone who does not share the same faith as you, the monotony of a daily shared life. I was praying at the temple a few days back (before I even knew about the proposal) and I distinctly remembered saying this "God, if I end up  with "I", please, God do not let me abandon my own faith nor forsake everything that I believe in. Please do not allow me to lose myself". 

I suppose it is only a natural progression of our relationship which has spanned over 3 1/2 years. I know the he has no doubts at all about getting married - after all he is a practicing Catholic who believes in the sanctity of holy matrimony. I, on the other hand, believe marriage to be nothing but a social institution, constructed by men for economic and financial benefits and other strategic reasons. Love can exist, with or without marriage. We are entirely 2 different people, he and myself; and I entered into the relationship not expecting it to last (being the true cynic that I was and am). But it somehow prevailed and here I am today, wondering if there is ever an easy answer to such a difficult, timeless and universal question.