Karl and I met at Murray State University the fall of 2017. We briefly met at a themed mixer between his fraternity and my sorority. Not much was said beyond hello, but we took notice of each other. Next, Karl follows me on instagram. The following week I was studying by myself in the basement of the Waterfield Library on campus. I glance up and notice this tall, tan, gorgeous guy walk past with a few other guys- it was Karl from that Sigma Chi mixer! They sit at a table at the other end of the room and I go back to studying. Over the next hour, I can’t help but notice Karl has passed my table three times to fill up his water bottle. On the third trip past we make eye contact and he approaches. “Working hard, or hardly working?” says Karl with this genuine and goofy grin. We proceeded to talk for 30 minutes. Later that night I couldn’t stop talking about him. I was kicking myself I didn’t give him my number or Snapchat, and I was dramatic and worried I would never see him again. Eventually, with the encouragement from my roommate, I worked up the courage to message him on instagram, saying something to the effect of how I’m silly and forgot to get his snap earlier that day. (Yes it is true, I slid into his dms). Karl replied that he also regretted not getting my Snapchat, and from there it’s history. We began dating, and became official the following May. We visited each other’s homes for the first time that summer. For sophomore year, Karl had to move back home to Belleville where he would attend SWIC. We both agreed there was no question- we wanted to try long distance. Over the next 3.5 years we saw each other every 3-4 weeks on the weekends. Long distance was not easy, but we both knew it was worth it. Karl stuck with me through the horror saga that is nursing school, and through the illness and death of my father. In December of 2021 I graduated from nursing school. In 2022 I moved to St. Louis and began working as a Med-Surge oncology nurse at Mercy South Hospital; Karl lived just across the river in Belleville, IL working as a floor installer. We were over the moon to be only 30 minutes apart after living long distance for so long. The next several years we grew even closer and fell even more in love. I began a new job at the Sindelar Cancer Infusion Center at Mercy South St. Louis to continue my career in oncology. Karl moved into his own house in Belleville, continued floor installing, as well as working a second job learning to flip houses. After a long awaited time, on New Year’s Eve 2026, Karl proposed. I came home straight from work to rush and get ready for a party our friend was hosting. I opened the door and immediately dropped all my bags at the door. Before me were hundreds of rose petals & tea light candles scattering the floor, forming a path. Dozens of photos of us over the years were placed along the pathway. Squealing with excitement and total surprise, I began to walk the candlelit path through the kitchen into the living room, trying to take in every photo while Frank Sinatra played. Karl was all dressed up in a circle of rose petals in the living room. After a heartfelt prepared speech, he got down on one knee and proposed. I said “yes, a thousand times yes!!”.