Three strands are not easily broken — Ecclesiastes 4:12

Our meeting was a complete setup. Mutual friends of ours had their wedding in January of 2024, and masterfully orchestrated our evening. Nate was an old coworker and friend of the groom, and Rachel had grown up homeschooling with both of the masterminds behind this scheme. They seated us strategically and recruited wingmen, confident that we'd hit it off. At the time, Rachel had been comfortably single for a year and a half. She always figured that when the right guy came by, she'd know. So when she found out that the bride recruited their girlfriends to be her wingmen, she was intrigued to see what the event had in store for her... Nate was, admittedly, fed up with the dating scene. After a failed engagement in the past, and several dead-end first dates, his hopes were low. If not for the encouragement of his own family, he would not have even gone to the wedding. So, naturally, he was super excited when the groom told him that there was but one "eligible young lady" that would be present for this occasion... The big day was upon us. Rachel and her parents entered the church, excited for the ceremony to begin. They found their seats and Rachel broke away to chat with old friends. When she returned, there was a cute guy sitting one seat away from her mom! So she sat down in the only available seat, between her mother and this young man. All the while, her mother nudged and elbowed her, wondering if he was the eligible bachelor Rachel would be set up with. Meanwhile, Nate had arrived by himself and, not really knowing anyone but the groom, was keeping to himself and trying not to stare at the beautiful woman seated beside him. After the ceremony, Nate was still having trouble keeping his eyes to himself, while Rachel's family stood in the entryway of the church, deciding what they would do with their time before the reception started. Like any inexperienced young man, Nate had no idea what to do with himself. Once the country club opened up for the reception, Nate quickly found the table he was seated at. And, within a few minutes, who would show up but Rachel and her family, seated at the same table; and as everyone chose their seats, these future lovebirds would find themselves beside each other once more. They chatted the night away; Rachel being winked at by her wingmen, and Nate given courage by a drink or two. As the end of the night neared, the groom's sister found them, and (literally) thrust Rachel towards Nate, demanding that he give Rachel his number. He was more than happy to oblige, not that he had a much of a choice in this matter. Our night came to a close with a prolonged goodbye and a couple hours of texting. And, a year later, she said yes!! But that's another story...