Under the shadow of El Capitan's great wall stands a Ponderosa Pine with a faded wooden plaque that reads "The Kennedy Tree | Fritz & Hazel". It is actually two trees that have started to grow together. I (Tyler) am peering out from behind it's double-trunks--sweating profusely despite the canopy's shade and whipping winds--trying to catch a glimpse of what I hope will be an unforgettable lifetime moment. It's May 11th, 2025 in Yosemite National Park. Roughly 3-years earlier I met Alysia through an online dating app (Bumble, if you're curious). Our relationship evolved patiently, naturally and lovingly. I think it caught both of us off guard. It didn't take me three years to know that I wanted to share my life with her, nor did I intend to propose through some grand gesture. It's just that by the time I was ready to pop the question, logistical considerations happened to provide the opportunity for an epic surprise. I knew it would be meaningful to Alysia to have her family around if I were ever to propose. As it happened, she and her family had a road trip planned in May to attend two different family weddings--one in San Antonia, Texas and the other in Fresno, California. They were planning to visit a number of National Parks along the way, including Carlsbad Caverns, Painted Desert, The Grand Canyon and Sequoia National Park. So, when I called her Mom and Sister to ask if they would consider tacking on Yosemite National Park at the end of their trip for a surprise proposal, that addition to the itinerary never raised suspicion. Huge shout out to Carleen and Sam for all their righteous lies on my behalf and helpful coordination! The night before the proposal I was facetiming with Alysia from our house in Atlanta, Georgia. Early the next morning my friend John drove me to the airport so I could catch a flight to Fresno, pick up my rental car and drive 2-hours to the park to get everything set up before Alysia and her family arrived. I wasn't able to communicate with them once inside the park due to poor cellular reception, so I sent a picture of my rental car to her family before I lost service and told them to find it in the line of cars parked alongside El Capitan Meadow. There, along the fence line next to where I parked, I tied a picture of us with a red bow that my Mom had lent me. On the backside of the photo was a note the read "Hi baby, I'm here in this meadow..." and provided further instructions to come find me. I tied several other photos of us with notes on them to trees along the path that lead to Fritz & Hazel, where I was hiding. I even tried to pay some rock climbers who had a nice camera to be on standby for taking pictures of the whole thing, but you know climbers...they're totally unreliable and don't care for money. Just kidding, the timing just didn't work out. When Alysia and her family finally arrived, I saw them all pile out of the van. Sam starting booking it up the line of cars to find my rental car while Carleen was coaxing Alysia to head in the same direction. About half way through I witnessed (but could not hear) a verbal exchange between her and her Mom, after which Alysia turned around and started running back to the car. I had no idea what was happening, but my heart sunk at the prospect of a pre-proposal rejection. Luckily, she had only run back to grab something she needed. When she finally made it to the first photo in my string of clues, she embodied a blank, lifeless look of recognition, then collapsed in her own pool of tears. "Success", I wish I had thought with a smirk of satisfaction. Instead, I thought nothing and felt it all, the weight of my tears bidding my knees to buckle. Happily, her mom recorded that moment and the rest of Alysia's clue-finding mission, including our proposal at the place where two trees become one. If you remind us, we'd be happy to share it with you.