Discovery and Adventure! Why Not? We met on that geezer dating site Our Time on January 8, 2022. I came into the year with Discovery and Adventure as my mission statement. Sarah’s was Why Not? We messaged. We texted. We talked on the phone. We had so much in common. Science. Curiosity. Nature. World views. Respect for women. Live music. Grief. Our first face to face was a week or so later for coffee. The conversation flowed easily. We quickly realized that, if nothing else, we’d be good friends. We started spending time together. On January 30, we stepped out of the friend zone. We had date nights and movie nights. We saw “Lost City”at Kimble’s here in town after a great meal at Bonnie and Reed and picked up our tag line: dulcius ex asperis. Latin for Sweeter after Difficulty. We had Cuban food with “A Few Good Men”. Baked fish on fancy dinnerware for “Master and Commander”. Turkey burgers with “Wild”. Chicken pot pie with “The Last Star Fighter”. Traditional Minnesota hot dish with “Miracle”. We traveled together. Albuquerque for the Central New Mexico Research Challenge. Sarah became addicted to carne adovada on the first bite! Florida for my baby brother’s wedding. Three days in Key Largo together. Swimming beside her with my arm around her while we snorkeled was a high point for me. Then to the wedding in Melbourne. We’d taken dance lessons together to be the hottest couple on the dance floor but were very much out shinned by the bride and groom. Winter Park in July for hiking at 10,000 feet. The Upper Peninsula of Michigan where I did some kayaking for the first time. Holy wa! We went to live performances together. Tommy Castro. Beethoven’s 9th with a 150 voice chorus. We danced to a street musician on the walk to the theater. James Taylor. A modern dance performance with was quite interesting! Colorado Springs Symphony several times. Post Modern Jukebox at the Paramount in Denver. We met families and friends. We hosted a big 4th of July party together. She got me out of my chair and on to some great trails. She inspired me by doing the Manitou Springs incline on her 60th birthday in June. She took me to indoor skydiving for my birthday. We grew together very quickly. Then, in September, I decided it was time. I cooked up a plan that day that, much to my great joy, came down like clockwork! I proposed on the swing under the Autumn Purple Ash in the front yard. Once she got past the surprise and the thrill, she accepted. We’ve been through a lot in our lives. We know what we want and are more than willing and able to work for it. We want to spend the rest of our lives together. Come join us as we make it official! Dulcius ex Asperis!