... God created the heavens and the earth, and then some time later, we happened. Dave & Renee's story sort-of begins with a series of near misses: they attended the same church growing up (First Baptist Church, La Mirada), grew up in adjacent neighborhoods, went to the same high school (La Mirada High, for a year ...), and went to the same church again in 2007/2008 (Rock Harbor Costa Mesa) ... In all of this time, they never officially met. Fast forward to 2012, Renee was attending Rock Harbor Fullerton and preparing to leave for a year in India (well, 9 months in India and 4 in Palestine). As it so happens, a number of Dave's closest friends also attended RHF, and so he would join them after service got out on Sunday evenings for grub, coffee, fro yo, and conversation at 'The Compound' (ahem, the small plaza with a Starbucks, Yogurtland, and Chipotle off Chapman & State College in Fullerton). It was here, on one of those fateful nights, that Dave & Renee finally met ... And chatted for maybe 5 minutes, tops. Another near miss: Dave joined a team through Rock Harbor and the Telos Project that would be going to Palestine for 2 weeks at the same time that Renee was on the Palestine leg of her trip. Alas, work threw a wrench in Dave's plans and he had to step back from the trip. Fast forward to the end of 2013, Renee returns from her trip, Dave had kept up the pattern of hanging out with the RHF crew Sunday evenings, and so they occasionally saw each other and chatted. Around this time, Dave begins working at a coffee shop (RIP Ink & Bean!) in Anaheim only to discover that Renee was working at a nearby restaurant (RIP Gypsy Den, Anaheim!). Having been attracted to Renee since they first met, Dave decided to take the opportunity to stop in regularly to chat (and get some of Gypsy's vegan chili). After several occasions of popping in to say hi and chat, Dave asked Renee to grab dinn ... coffee. They did a few days later and they fell madly in love. The end.

It's me... Renee After church on Sunday, March 24th, Dave and I went over to the Bankses to have lunch with Will, Stef and Abby. When Stef opened the suspiciously locked front door (clue #1), she let us know that Abby and Will were in the backyard. We headed to the back of the house and put our stuff down on a table (including a bag of theology books Dave brought in to share - clue #2 - just a few books that would have been easy to carry in on their own). The backyard was empty (clue #3) so I started to walk into the kitchen to wash my hands. By this time, I did notice the nice song playing over the speakers (clue #4) - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EKGHkBComjM - Go ahead and open that up in another tab for the full affect. Go ahead. I'll wait. It's worth it I promise. Dave then asked me where I was going and asked if I recognized the song playing over the speakers. "Of course.... its the song I choreographed a dance to for you while I was in Palestine" Our first Valentine's Day together was spent on opposite sides of the globe. Dave at home in California, and I in Bethlehem, Palestine. He sent me roses (an incredible feat on its own) and a recording of him reading a poem he wrote for me, and I sent him a recording of the dance. Dave then grabbed my hand and the mostly empty bag of "books" (clue #5) and we walked out to the empty backyard to sit on a bench facing the empty garden (clue #6). He then started telling me how much he loved me (?) and some other beautiful stuff and pulled me closer. Keep in mind that the song is still playing. Then -out of no where- one by one, 7 of my dancers came out and danced a newly choreographed dance! I immediately started crying. Like weeping. Uncontrollably. As the dance came to a close with each dancer handing me a rose, Dave grabbed my hand, walked me out to the lawn and got down on one knee while offering me the ring I will wear for the rest of our lives! It was absolutely perfect! Like disgustingly perfect!