Emily and I have been together for nearly seven years. The love story began when Emily attended her first college party at Saginaw Valley State University. I was also at this party, sporting the usual backwards snap back that never left my head. This was to keep the “flow” contained. Without introduction, Emily perused over to me and flirtatiously grabbed my hat off my head as if she owned the place, and ran off. I wasn’t going to let such a pretty girl just take my hat and bolt. I chased her down to the middle of the party to repossess what was mine. I ended up getting a lot more than I was expecting. Emily and I sat in lawn chairs in the middle of the party, and dove into conversation as if we were sitting down at a coffee shop as old friends. People watching, opinions of this or that, stories of how we grew up... Everything. I need to stress how difficult it was to have a decent conversation during a SVSU townhomes party. It truly felt as if there was no one else there that night… That was until Emily’s roommates came over and broke it up because it was time to go home. Emily smiled my way and left. What she didn’t realize at the time was that she and I made a connection that will now last a lifetime.