A lot of things contribute to finding a good home, the location, the style, the decor and many other factors great and small. Much is the same for finding a church home. Interestingly enough this isn't really a story about either. I was looking for a partner. The Bible says he who finds a wife, finds a good thing. So what better place to begin looking for a good thing than a church? After visiting different churches I found myself at Metropolitan Seventh-Day Adventist, a mere 10 minutes from my home in traffic on a mildly cold wintry day (that's Maryland for you). It was Metro's Caribbean Celebration Sabbath. Which is a big ting in metro eh (colloquially speaking). It was on this day that I would see Susan walk elegantly to the podium and recite a beautiful poem. Truth be told the poem was amazing but the reader was what caught my attention. With my attention drawn in, the Holy Spirit delivered a message through Pastor Alex Royes about speaking up. Speaking up is important, the saying goes "closed mouths don't get fed" which for me meant that my skinny frame was attributed to more than a fast metabolism Not this Sabbath though. This Sabbath I would "taste and see that the Lord is good" or at least I hoped. At the conclusion of the service feeling confident in the spirit I approached Susan after the sermon to ask about the poem which I had hope to illustrate (well illustrating the poem would be a beneficial bonus to speaking to the poems reader). After a brief nervous introduction and small pleasantries a number was exchanged, unfortunately to my dismay I had failed to collect Susan's number after only exchanging my own. Maybe she'd reach out though... Three days later she did (of course I kept it cool! Shame on you for thinking otherwise). After wooing her with my charm (my story my version) she fell head over heels even managing to persist in dating after a well intentioned but rocky first date. Multiple dates and meaningful conversations later here we are!

For months Rob had been telling me that he had a speaking engagement that he was asked to do in Long Island, NY. The week before we were scheduled to be there, he kept asking me what I was going to wear. He also insisted that we were color coordinated. Although I hate matching, I decided to oblige since this weekend was such a big deal to him. Early on the Saturday morning of what I thought was Rob’s big speaking moment, his mom called to tell him that his aunt needed him to meet her at the park because something had happened to her bike. We of course just happened to be super close to this particular park. This should have been my first clue. When we got there, Rob asked me to get out of the car to help him find his aunt. We walked for a little bit, passing a glass encased carousel. As we got closer to where his aunt was supposed to be, I saw my sister, JoNise, one of my closest friends Leshawn, Robs’ two aunts, and a photographer. My sister handed me a stuffed animal, Leshawn gave me flowers, and Rob’s aunts handed me a card. In that moment, I was in complete shock…literally…all I kept saying was “You said we were going to the Hamptons”. In the chaos of it all, Rob gave me a painting that he had been working on. The most beautiful painting I’ve ever seen! It was a painting of a man proposing to a woman under the Brooklyn Bridge. When I looked up, we were standing between the Brooklyn and Manhattan Bridges. In that moment, things came full circle. A guy from the Bronx was proposing to a girl from Brooklyn. Still in shock, all I could say was “You said we were going to the Hamptons!” And then I said, “yes!” We are grateful that you are joining us to celebrate our journey to this point, and we are looking forward to including you as we create new memories!