Countdown is on…we get married in 5 days!!!

It all started on the evening of October 17th 2015...after having lived in the same Midwest city all of our lives, Kathryn and I met for the very first time after a Florida beach wedding…where her best friend married mine. Somehow, after having never crossed paths for 27 years, we ended up side-by-side at the Toucan Lounge (one of Clearwater's finest establishments), awkwardly being introduced by Denny, Kathryn's mom. I bought Kathryn a drink (but only after learning she spoke *FOUR* languages), then spent the rest of that evening all the way into the early morning hours, celebrating our friends, laughing, and sneaking kisses while the wedding party had dance offs. We were immediately drawn to one other and had the most intriguingly bizarre conversations - we covered everything from Steven Hawking (prone in a bush *don't ask*) to Kathryn's (in)ability to speak four languages and belted Rich Homie Quan songs. As difficult as it was to leave, we said goodbye and returned to our lives ten hours and four states apart - hers in Georgia and mine in Indiana.   Two years later, Josh accepted a job that brought him five hours (and two states) nearer to me (Kathryn) - unintentionally, but as it turned out, serendipitously. While we each were recovering from heartaches apart but at the same time, our deep friendship drew us even closer. After asking several times that summer, Josh finally convinced me to visit him in North Carolina where we spent 24 hours watching penguins and jellyfish at a small-town aquarium, swinging on tire swings in the rain, swimming in the ocean, and just...being happy. Over the course of the next year, Kathryn and I only spent two or three weekends apart. Fast forward to May 9th 2019, in the same secret garden we celebrated our first anniversary, Josh got down on one knee and asked me to be his teammate for the rest of our lives. If someone is "strangely comfortable" to you, be with that person.

So. The time has come for my beautiful daughter to marry a handsome young man I love and respect. I’m fairly certain most mothers can agree that they wish for their children to find the perfect life partner – that one special someone who has a check mark next to all the qualities desired in a spouse – with very few (ideally none) negative qualities. Throughout my years I’ve seen many women make the decision to marry simply because the positive traits outweighed the negative ones – and not necessarily by a landslide. I am so proud to say that this is not the case with Kathryn and Josh. As many of you know, I introduced Kathryn to Josh following their friends’ beach wedding in 2015, which I was privileged to attend as Kathryn’s ‘plus one’. As much as I love taking credit for their meeting solely as my doing, I acknowledge that they were destined to be together with or without my introduction. After two years of friendship and while Kathryn was serving in the Air Force, she traveled to the Middle East on a special 6-month assignment. Kathryn and I communicated frequently (and this mom sent LOTS of coffee and care packages!) but it was Josh who communicated with her almost daily, keeping her spirits up and infusing her time spent there with mega doses of witty texting humor and debates about guns and politics. Though neither of them likely knew it at the time, Josh was her rock and brought her through those challenging days and nights – still as “just friends.” Though I’ve said it before, thank you for that, Josh. After returning home, Kathryn briefly rekindled a relationship with her college sweetheart. The short reunion ended, and Kathryn fell into an all-time low – feeling as if she’d never love again. I had never seen her so sad and feeling lost, but I knew the reason for her heartbreak had to be because she was destined to yet find her one true love.

Josh, in the meantime, had moved from Indiana to North Carolina for a new job (he’s a very talented photographer, by the way). They continued their friendship but now he was only five hours away! Countless times he invited Kathryn to make a weekend trip out to visit him, until one day she relented and made the almost-6-hour drive to the Southeast coast (again, after bouts of back-and-forth with her mother, who insisted she make the most of her summer). During her visit I knew things were at a turning point when I saw a picture Josh had captured of Kathryn after hours of playing in the giant ocean waves – she had wet hair, a raw freckled face and that beautiful smile that reached her eyes - the one I hadn’t seen in WEEKS. The prologue was over, and so began their love story. Kathryn, I couldn’t be happier for you to soon start your voyage as husband and wife with the man I know was intended for you. Josh, thank you for making my daughter the happiest I’ve ever seen her. I could not be prouder to soon have you as my son-in-law. I love you both. Now…I just have to research make-up that won’t run or smear, because I’ll be crying mega amounts of tears of joy as I watch you two start your life as husband and wife. (Writer currently has red puffy eyes from crying while writing about this love story!) Lots of love, Momma The End

The date has been set for our son to marry Kathryn, and Jeff and I couldn’t be more pleased. It’s amazing how parallel their lives were from the very beginning – both were born in Texas, both moved to Indiana when they were young (he was only nine weeks old and she was less than a year), and both graduated from high schools just a few miles apart on the southside of Indianapolis, somehow never crossing paths. It took their best friends getting married on a beach in Florida in 2015 for them to finally meet. From the first time Jeff and I met Kathryn, we liked her — we knew she and Josh would make a great couple. She brings out the very best in him and has truly opened up his world to things he’d never thought of doing or trying before. She is witty and spunky and if you know Joshua at all, you know he needs someone to keep him on his toes — which she does very well! When he asked if he could invite Kathryn to our 30th vow renewal in 2017 and sit at the head table after not even a month of dating, we knew there was something special between them. Kathryn - welcome to the Munger family! Making it official on September 10th will be the highlight of our 2021! And Joshua - way to go! I love you both. -gail