Future Foxes

Lauren and I met in a small seminar class that would meet at different locations around campus each week. Our first week, we met at the Museum of Natural History where we were asked to pair-off to complete an assignment. Naturally, while the teacher was giving the instructions, I quietly shuffled over to be next to Lauren and asked her to be my partner. To my pleasure/surprise, she said yes, and we spent the next few hours wandering the halls of the museum and getting to know each other. If I had known then what I know now, I probably would have proposed to her on the spot. 9 years later, a little wiser and a little older, I brought her back to the same spot to ask her to marry me. Unfortunately, when I started doing my research I realized that the place we met was under renovation, and the museum was moving to the Biological Sciences Building (to be opened in Spring 2019). Through some internet sleuthing and help from my mom, I was able to figure out that the centerpiece of the museum - the only male/female mastodon pair anywhere in the world - had already been moved and reassembled in the new building. While a proposal in front of two mastodons may seem a bit non-traditional, I thought there was beautiful symbolism in the fact that Michigan brought the two of them together (just like me and Lauren) and despite moving and going through a few changes, they still are, and forever will be, by each other's side. Determined to make this happen, I sent an email to the director of the museum to see if they could open-up the exhibit for our proposal. To my surprise, the director immediately got back to me and said they would be thrilled to help us make this happen, and asked if they could cover it on social media. Seeing as how the museum and school brought us together, I couldn't think of any better way to pay them back than by telling our story and allowing them to use our moment to further their cause. copy/paste -> https://tinyurl.com/forevergofox -Jon