Sam and Yiskah first met at Anshi, and the theme of the story is "timing". She had just started to attend service there and it was Sam's first time at Anshi. The first introduction was anything but romantic, with Sam sitting down next to her and introducing himself right as she had eaten a handful of sweet barbecue potato chips.

Sam and Yiskah started dating with a different mindset, they were both looking for someone special and wanted to find someone who shared similar values. As they continued to date, they discovered that they had a strong connection and also wanted the same things out of life.

Yiskah was in Atlanta for two years during an exchange program from Colombia - and was actually just ending her time in the United States. Yiskah planned on traveling back to Colombia and deciding her future from there. They had both decided to continue their relationship and work through the distance. Sam had decided to visit Yiskah in Colombia - originally planning on surprising her for her birthday in April but deciding to come early in March. Little did Sam know that moving his trip up to early March would be the difference between him seeing her, or not seeing her, for nearly the rest of the year.

During COVID Sam and Yiskah heavily relied on any available video platform to continue their relationship - from Zoom dinners to FaceTime walks. Colombia had shut down their airports and would continue to do so - 7 separate times - until finally opening up in September. The interesting thing about distance is it removes the physical aspect of a relationship and forces people to focus on everything else. Although this time period was difficult it was extremely valuable for Sam and Yiskah as they grew closer together emotionally and spiritually.

Yiskah was able to visit Sam in the United States in September, and they were ale to spend time together in person again. They had spent a lot of time growing their relationship virtually and meeting in person brought a new stage of their relationship. Their relationship in-person was more mature and developed than earlier in the year. During this time Sam and Yiskah decided they did not want to be separated anymore - during COVID but also for the rest of their lives.

This brings us to everyone reading this story! We are so excited to be together again and working through the details of this wedding. We know these are unusual times and we are just happy for anyone who wants to celebrate with us - in person or virtually. Everyone reading this has impacted our lives in different ways and we are really grateful for that. We hope as the world continues to open up that we can travel and visit everyone in person to celebrate. - Yiskah and Sam