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Day three of Camp Nerd Fitness, I’m walking alone on a gravel path headed to my second class of the day. Earlier in 2016, I came across a health and fitness blog called Nerd Fitness. I read the blog here and there. One day I heard that for the third year in a row, they would be running an in-person camp in Georgia, five days filled with all sorts of classes and activities, all with the aim of “Leveling Up” your life while having fun. Dancing, cooking, Jujitsu, and so many others. Well, all that sounds fun, but I don’t know. I closed the email and didn’t think about it much again. Months later, while at work, I opened an email announcing that only four tickets remained, and in that moment I thought, yeah, let’s do this. Like I said, it’s day three and I’m more than halfway through the camp. While I had been having a lot of fun during the past few days, I had yet to feel like I connected with anyone. So there I was on this gravel path, feeling a bit frustrated and down, kicking up dust with each thought, but I was looking forward to this next class because I had always wanted to try boxing. The class was under a gazebo overlooking a lake--very picturesque. As one of the last to arrive, I walked over to an opening along the edge of the gazebo. To this day, we said it was the other that said “hi” first, but we talked, and we talked for just a couple minutes before class started. We all partnered up by height so CJ and I didn’t interact again the whole class, but out of curiosity, I stole the occasional glance. After the class, my boxing partner and I were going to grab some lunch and I asked CJ if he wanted to join us. And so we continued the conversation that we started an hour before. We exchanged our gamer tags, which would soon evolve into a tradition of Friday-night game nights for the next five years.

Our story began at Camp Nerd Fitness. Yes, it’s just as it sounds. Deep in the hillbilly hills of North Georgia at a Jewish summer camp, nerds from all over gather together to teach and encourage each other to get into shape and live a healthier life. I was one of these nerds, recently diagnosed with pre-hypertension and adverse to exercise, and I was looking to change my circumstances for the better. Not knowing anybody there and being as shy as I was, I wasn’t expecting to make any connections, let alone any friends, but my expectations were turned around on the third day of camp. I had planned to go to a class on stretching, but on the suggestion from a camper, I ended up going to a boxing class instead. I will always thank this nameless camper in my prayers because they were the reason why I ended up in the same class as Kim. Kim, cool and cute, with an orange bandana tied around her head. As people were gathering for class, she came up to me saying, hi. I said hi as well and followed up with the very appropriate question, “so, what makes you a nerd?”. And that led to a fun conversation that ended too soon as the class was beginning. With such a height difference, there was no way we could partner up, so parted during class. I looked for her afterwards, but not pushing my luck, I just said that I’d see her around and walked away. To my surprise, she called out to me and asked if I wanted to have lunch with her. I always give Kim credit for this moment because if she didn’t ask me then, I would’ve been too shy and probably wouldn’t have approached her again. I said yes and that lunch ended up changing a lot of things for us. We spent the rest of camp hanging out and taking classes together. She even invited me to hang out with her in Atlanta after camp. Our first date? Anyway, once Kim was back in Boston, we stayed in touch, texting almost everyday, and playing games online every Friday night. And that went on for about five years. Is it May 7th yet?

For our 2021 family road trip, I suggested stopping by Atlanta so that our families could meet. CJ and I also thought it would be a perfect opportunity to surprise our families with a proposal. The how and when was up to him. His family graciously hosted a cookout on a beautiful Saturday afternoon. I kept a close eye on him, slightly on edge, because I didn’t know exactly how he would propose. After everyone was stuffed, CJ invited everyone into the living room to play Werewolf, a detective party game that we’ve played throughout the years we’ve known each other, with friends, family, and even strangers. In the game, there were werewolves amongst villagers and the object of the game was to find out who the werewolves were. Each game you received a card determining if you were a werewolf or villager. The first game ended with a victory for the villagers. In the second game, as CJ passed out the cards, I checked my role. Mine said “The Bride”. I tried not to react and put my head down like everyone else to start the game. During the initial setup, the narrator, CJ, would ask certain roles to “wake up” one by one. When he asked “The Bride” to wake up, everyone started muttering that it wasn't a role in the game. By then, I had my eyes open and there he was, on one knee, looking so gorgeous and sweet, with a pair of earrings in hand. The feels sprang to the top and I leapt into his arms before I could even say yes.