I was out one night with my friends at Rays. They say you go to Rays for one: what one truly means is still up for debate. I was still new to SDSU and eager to get to know more people. I had a few calves at home still needing to be sold so I struck up a conversation with a buddy about this steer I had. At one point he mentioned a girl in the bar that had the same love of herefords I did. I didn't think too much more of it until more people joined the conversation. At some point, one of Haley's friends I didn't know at the time, grabbed my hand and pulled me face to face with this girl in a hooters hat and PJ's. I knew absolutely nothing about her besides the fact she was the girl my buddy had mentioned. I shook her hand and introduced myself. We got to talking about showing livestock and I asked her whether or not her little sister needed a hereford steer to show. I'm happy she didn't laugh at me for being a hereford guy from Illinois trying to sell this maine-anjou girl from South Dakota a steer. While her inteset in the steer may have been low, my interest in her was very high. I'd say it worked out well for me since I went to rays for one, and found the one.

The story is a tale as old as time. Two people walk into Ray's as strangers and come out as friends. I met Jake on a night I didn't feel like going out. In protest, I wore my pajamas and a ratty old hat thinking my friends and I would only be out a short time. We ended up closing Ray's down that night because I got pulled into a conversation with a boy I didn't want to end. He was wearing a show pigs hat so I asked him if he showed pigs to which he immediately said no. He did however share he showed herefords and that was how it all began. I sat next to my future husband for 2 hours talking about anything and everything. I left with a big smile on my face, a new phone number, and no new hereford steer. Our first date is another one of my favorite stories. We ended up reconnecting after a few weeks and he met me downtown after my friends had all but disappeared. He swooped in like prince charming and walked me home. On the walk I mentioned I was headed home early because I was going to church in the morning. He said he loved that and I invited him to go with me. He smiled and said yes. That next morning I picked him up and we went to Gracepoint in Brookings. He asked me when we walked in and sat down if this was the part where he got struck by lightning. If you know anything about Jake, he is always telling jokes and I am always laughing with him. At the end of the sermon, the pastor asked us to bow our heads in prayer. We were holding hands at the time and I saw Jake look at our hands, look at me, and I could see in his eyes he didn't want to let go and he knew I didn't either. I reached over grabbed his other hand and placed them on top of our already joined hands. We held our hands together, leaned in, and prayed together. It was like a moment out of my wildest dreams and as crazy as it sounds, I knew he was the man God had sent to me in that moment. After the service he took me to breakfast at Perkins and we decided that it was our first official date. Four years later, I am preparing to marry this man. It seems crazy that it all began with pajamas, hereford cattle, and holding hands at church. It's my own perfect fairy tale.