We're getting married!!

The first time I remember meeting Skyler was during lunch in the chow hall at school. She was sitting with one of my old co-workers from High School and I decided to sit with him. While I was sitting next to him, of course, I noticed this beautiful girl sitting near him and did what most immature teenage boys did, make fun of her. She was working on her poetry book and I made a comment about how I thought all girls went through a book phase where they thought they were going to publish a book (mainly because of my two sisters). She took offense and also saw it as a challenge. She found my Instagram and Snapchat and followed both and we started talking on Snapchat. I remember for one of our first dates I took her to one of my favorite spots in Dahlonega, the abandoned copper mines behind Yahoola Park. I really liked that spot because it was a nice little walk, and not a lot of people knew about it. Fast forward to finals week, I was wrestling with asking her to be my girlfriend because I REALLY liked her, but I was about to leave for Taiwan for 6 months and didn’t want something to go wrong while I was gone and we wouldn’t be together when I got back. I was upfront with her and told her how I felt, and she responded by telling me that either way, she would wait for me to come home. That meant a lot to me and we decided to take the chance together. We were able to spend New Year's Eve together and I left for Taiwan on New Year's Day early in the morning. We spent 6 months on opposite sides of the globe together, 12 timezones apart, but I believe all that distance brought us even closer. When I got back, we were able to spend summer break together, she was at my Airborne graduation at Fort Benning, I helped her move into her first apartment, and we spent this past fall semester seeing each other almost every day, not through a phone camera. I love Skyler so much and am so excited to spend the rest of my life, figuring out how to be an adult and overcoming obstacles with her every day.

I met Micah in the chow hall. I was sitting in a booth, listening to music, writing my poetry book. I looked to my right and I saw my roommate, Micah, and one of her friends. She invited me to sit with them, but I declined and said that I was writing my book. The first words Micah said to me were “I think every girl goes through a phase of thinking they can write a book” I gasped at his comment, it challenged my stubbornness. He left and I got his name from my roommate and found him on Instagram and Snapchat. I started to Snapchat him a bit, we talked about our interests. I fibbed and told him I enjoyed running and getting up early, fun fact I do not like to run or get up early. After some time though, he stopped replying. I didn't hear from him for a couple of weeks when I was standing in the line for chow lunch behind him, he turned and asked if I was sitting at my spot and if there was room. We talked about that until he left and went to class, after he left I got a text that my hair was pretty. We decided to make plans for our first date and watch the notebook. I was so nervous when he first got there I spilled my roommate's coke all over my pants. We sat and watched the movie, we talked and laughed. There was something about him that made me calm when we were talking. A few days later he took me to these abandoned mineshaft. We sat under the stars. A few days later we were home for Thanksgiving and had a brunch date and he meant my family. On December 13th, Micah took me to breakfast and then we walked around the reservoir. We sat on a bench and we talked about Taiwan. He was worried something would happen with him being so far away and we would never be together anymore. I told him that no matter what, I would wait until we could be together. We decided to start dating that day. We celebrated our first Christmas together and got each other gifts and then New Year's Eve came. I sat with him, we played games and watched movies. We sat together until 3 am when I left so he could go to Taiwan. This was the first day we said I love you. 187 days we were apart, separated by 12 time zones. The only way we could talk was through a screen. You don’t realize how close you become to someone being that far from them. The only way we could feel close to each other was to share all, who we were as people and the experiences in our lives that have brought us to where we were. 8,000 miles apart and yet I have never felt so close to someone in my life. No moment during his stay in Taiwan did I question if he cared for me. He’d send me flowers and gifts and even managed to get a letter he wrote for me from Taiwan. He always made time for me and no matter how tired he was, he listened to ramble about my day on the phone, putting him to sleep every night. Some days were harder for us, but we made it through. He is one of the most selfless people I have met and I couldn't love him more for it. Finally, the best day came, the day he got back. I rode with his family to the airport shaking with excitement. I still remember the moment he came around the corner and we made eye contact, for the first time in 187 days. The first time we got to hug again after he came back, that memory lives fondly in my mind, I still remember how tight we squished each other, as if the other would disappear again if we let go. We rode back to his farm, enjoying our time together. We ate dinner together, went for walks, watched movies, and fell asleep on the couch. During the summer Micah went to Airborne school and I got to be at his graduation. He helped me move into my apartment and we started school together. We cook dinner with each other most nights and go grocery shopping. We’ve grown and navigated the troubles that come with growing responsibilities, but I never have to worry if Micah is in my corner. I know no matter what I do, where I go, or what life throws at me I will have him to cheer me on. I love him very much and always will.