We’re getting married!

Bella and I met by chance over five years ago. It was Super Bowl Sunday. February, 2021. I got a text from my friend, Grant, asking me to come to his place and watch the game. He was dating (and is now married to) his partner Abby at the time. Bella and Abby are best friends, and on this memorable Sunday, Bella just so happened to be at Grant and Abby's house for the game too. I walked in the front door. I was immediately captivated by Bella. She was not just visually stunning, but her quiet yet charming personality instantly caught my attention. What Bella won't tell you is that after I had gotten to the house, and once I was sidetracked by the Super Bowl festivities on the TV, both she and Abby went to the front door where I had left my shoes. Apparently, the type of shoes a guy wears tells a lot about them. I was wearing white vintage Nike Blazer's, which must have been a good choice because after that night Bella and I were nearly inseparable. We spent the next several months doing everything together. What started out slow led to spending nearly every day together, whether it was finding something to go do around St. Louis or simply just sitting on the couch watching TV. Just over three months after we met, I moved to Chicago to get my Master's degree. I'll never forget us sitting in my car one of the nights just before I left, Ted Drewe's ice cream in hand, talking about where our relationship stood. Whether or not it could continue. We both couldn't deny the overwhelmingly strong feelings we had for each other. Thankfully, our story didn't stop there. We spent the next two years dating long-distance. Our weeks were filled with lots of texts, phone calls, and FaceTimes. Our weekends were filled with so many Amtrak train trips to and from St. Louis and Chicago that I nearly considered becoming a full-time train conductor. The distance was hard, but man was it worth it. Fast forward to today, and I now get to marry the girl of my dreams. There have been ups, there have been downs. We have experienced so much together and yet there is still so much to come. And through it all, our love for each other has remained constant and ever-growing. I thank God every day for you. I thank God for the opportunity to spend forever together. And, perhaps most importantly, I thank God that I wore those white vintage Nike Blazer's on that one Sunday night.