They met technically over Zoom during orientation in graduate school. They both felt called into the mental health field in their separate ways and decided to get their doctorates in clinical psychology. It was the height of COVID-19; Jeff was over in NorCal and Michelle was back home in Irvine. For Jeff, it was love at first sight. He saw Michelle's beautiful face pop up on his screen and wanted to know her more :). For Michelle, she was peaked by Jeff's persistency to get to know her. Over time, they realized they just got along--like harmony to a melody. They simply bonded over weird inside jokes, psychoanalyzing their lives, their love for the Lord, and supporting each other through late nights and grueling days of graduate school.

For Jeff: I had always been really good at giving, but not that great at receiving. I've come to realize that it was a way for me to protect myself from getting hurt. However, a relationship can only go so far when you only give and never let yourself receive. By God's grace, He brought me and Michelle together, and I began to experience what it was like to be loved without earning it. Evidently, that scared me, but I came to realize it was such a gift as well. It was truly when I chose to trust Michelle and open myself to her fully, that I realized that I had come to love and trust Michelle for who she was. For Michelle: Over time, I came to realize Jeff was my best friend, my companion, and the one who, through the fire and by God's grace, I grew closer with rather than further apart. It was when I started to see Jeff's flaws as something to grow with instead of running away from, that I realized I had come to love Jeff.