In the summer of 2020, we took a chance on each other when swiped right on Bumble. Lacy started the conversation--asking about the bagpipes in one of Brendan's pictures, which reminded her of college at PC. Brendan admitted his love of labor history, seeing that she studied the subject at Penn. We met in person at Clark Park, a beloved tree-filled oasis in West Philadelphia where we both lived, and quickly agreed to meet again. And again. And again... In those early days of the Covid-19 pandemic, we spent a lot of time at home and on walks with Lacy's doggo, Bouchie. Our big date nights consisted of trips to Target, cooking each other luxurious meals at home, and ordering too much Han Dynasty (if there is such a thing). We celebrated together and cried together, and more than that, we grew together. As 2022 waned we decided to hit the road and visited each others' hometowns in South Carolina and Washington. After an eventful 10-hour drive turned 15 hours down South for Thanksgiving, we realized we made quite a team. Less than a month later, a 5-hour trip to the Cascades turned to 10. These trips seemed quite an apt metaphor for our journey together: when the road seemed long we turned to each other for support and laughter. Our engagement, much like us and our relationship, is not exactly traditional. We began discussing how we wanted to shape our lives together but a traditional proposal didn't quite feel right. Instead, we opted for a mutual engagement. A day ahead of schedule, on June 21st in Clark Park, where we first met, we sat on a blanket and shared our hopes, our love, and our dreams.