save our date

It's safe to say that I've known William Griffin Walker all my life. I remember him in elementary school as the cute, big brown-eyed boy with a lot of energy. We both would pick on each other during class and yet he was always the only one to get in trouble with the teacher. My form of flirting back then was pinching Griffins arm with my sharp nails... Not sure why he stayed friends with me. These stages consisted of Griffin and I "dating" with Valentine's Day gifts thrown to each other from afar. When we would “break up" I would be so mad that I would throw away the gifts he got me (savage, right?). Thankfully my smart Mom saved them all! We went to a couple of dances in Middle School together and were good friends by the time High School hit. I tended to hangout with just him and his past girl friends because we were that good of friends!! Sophomore year we spent more and more time with each other because of Show Choir and at the end of Junior year was when we were both guilty of flirting with one another. We were best friends so our first kiss had to pass the "More than Friends" test. It passed. We started dating October 3, 2015 (Senior year) - I established this date because he never really formally asked me to be his girlfriend but this was our first actual going out to dinner date. I like to joke about that. A year later is when Griffin took me to the same first date spot and told me he loved me and I felt the same. We both attended the University of Alabama and have grown so much since our youth. We were blessed with the best community we could've asked for in college and were constantly encouraged in our faith by people younger and older than us. It is beautiful to look back and see the Lord's hand at work on our story. He has woven these two kids from Homewood, Alabama into a love story that was years in the making. Little did we know the potential our relationship had until we took up our own crosses and fully pursued the garden. Thank you, Lord!!!!

Julianne has always caught my eye, even from the very beginning. I’ve known her since we were in kindergarten and still remember days in fourth grade when I got in trouble with the teachers to try and impress her. Through the years, we were always fond of one another. We “dated” some in elementary school which meant buying $10 stuffed bears for her on Christmas and Valentine’s Day. We went to a dance or two in middle school where we finally got to “slow dance” and try and maintain conversation without too much eye contact. This molded into a strong friendship in middle school and into high school that left us nearly inseparable. We spent time at each other’s houses, we gave each other advice, and she even found herself hanging out with me and the various “flings” I had. There was always a part of me that was crushing on her no matter how hard I tried to fight it. It all changed late Junior year of high school as we went on a show choir trip together and the feelings I had bottled up were smacking me in the face (especially when she took a nap on my shoulder during a bus ride). I told her how I felt, I was rejected by sweet Jooge, and then decided to give her the silent treatment for nearly six months. Somehow that worked and we shared our feelings with one another September of Senior year and began dating shortly after. Over our four and a half years together, I have become enthralled with the beloved daughter of Christ that she continued to embody. I knew I wanted to marry her in second grade, but the support and grace and kindness she has shown me left no room for doubt. I left her for three months and spent a summer in Northern California and followed it up with a two month stint in Rwanda. She met those challenges head on with Christ in the lead and it allowed me to grow and ultimately our relationship to flourish. I can’t be sure of everything in this life but I can be sure that Jesus is the only way and Julianne will be my greatest earthly treasure.

Griffin told me to "dress to the nines" for a fun day date to cheer me up since I'd been sick (thankfully not with COVID). He picked me up from my house like he always does, but this time it was a little different...Griffin shows up, side hugs me (little did I know he had the ring in his coat pocket) and tells me he has a letter for me. My whole family is already assembled on the couch in the living room and Griffin leads me in and begins reading this beautiful letter out loud. Griffin writes me letters so this wasn't a shock to me, but it was out loud. In front of my family. And not a dry eye in the room. He reads the second letter at our first date spot that overlooks downtown Birmingham which is also where he first told me he loved me. Next, he takes me all the way to Tuscaloosa. Griffin had made a playlist of all our favorite songs, so I was pretty occupied and happy during the hour drive. The third letter's location was at Monarch (our favorite coffee shop/where we spent 90% of our time at UA). This one was centered around our amazing community the Lord had blessed us with and by now the tears were rolling. Next, he took me to the infamous 409 house where the guys live/have 6am bible study. He read the fourth letter highlighting the guys in our friend group who have continuously prayed over our relationship. Then three doors down was my old college house and this was our last stop for the letters. The fifth letter was read and centered around our girlfriends and the growth that was had in this house. With teary eyes, Griffin starts driving me down some random windy road. By now I am asking a million questions because we have never been this way. We pull up to this gorgeous house on Lake Tuscaloosa and he tells me to get out, leave my sunglasses, and phone. I was kinda nervous but also thinking maybe we were having dinner here? (we hadn't eaten all day). He leads me around back and I knew right away when I saw the picture of us on a table that today was THE day!