Mark and I's story began when we were children. We attended a church together known as First Baptist Church of Anoka. Because our parents became friends and we spent a lot of time together, we quickly became close. We were pals in Sunday school, Awana, and would walk to church together with our moms. Eventually, we lost touch as my family and I switched churches. On October 21st, 2023, I received a Facebook message from Mark asking me if I would like to catch a service at First Baptist again. I had just gotten home from shopping with my mom and was shocked to see a message from an old friend I had not seen in forever! Sadly, the message was sent on Saturday night and I had to work the next morning, meaning I had to decline his invitation. Thankfully, I was able to meet him the following Sunday! I (very, very nervously) met up with Mark in the church and was immediately delighted by how kind he was. I was not sure what to expect since I had not seen him since we were children, but I was happy to find that he had turned out to be a nice, God-honoring, funny person who had a whole lot in common with me! After the church service, Mark invited me to have lunch with him. He ended up taking me to Kyoto Sushi, which was delicious! We had a great conversation and shared a lot of laughs. When I was struggling to use the chopsticks I was given with no silverware to save the day, Mark ditched his chopsticks and said, "who needs them" and ate sushi with his hands with me! After the date, on the drive home, I told God that if I couldn't marry Mark, I would never want anyone else. God heard my prayer and Mark reached out and asked to see me again. Since that day, I have not only learned how to properly use chopsticks, but also that I don't want to spend the rest of my life without Mark by my side.