The universe has a funny way of making everything align at just the right moment. I needed a job, but I received so much more than a paycheck. A factory floor is where I met the love of my life, and we've been inseparable even after I quit those 12-hour work nights together. It's much better to see him at home than in passing at work. Our coworkers are the ones who pushed for us to exchange numbers and go on that first date. Even though I hated that job - with the grueling manual labor on my feet all night - I'm so thankful that it led me to my husband.

Jon and I made it official on July 13th, 2025. Don't let him fool you: I'm the one who asked him. And a few months later, I asked him to move in with me. But in the beginning, we spent our mornings after the night shift at a local diner for breakfast or at the local park. I'll never be a morning person, but I fell in love with the way the sunrise reflected in his eyes as we gazed across Keuka Lake. And I'll never forget those breakfast dates where we shared our life stories and learned how the other likes their coffee,

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That first Renaissance Fair with Jon is an experience I'll never forget. My shoes were too small, and I had blisters by the time we made it back to the car. He'd have carried me if I'd let him. It's a genuine miracle to find the person that matches your soul down to the most minute detail. To match your energy, your nerdiness, your weird and eccentric. To complement my Renaissance outfit, Jon gave me a "promise ring." A placeholder until our actual engagement a year later. And this is my "why": I can always count on Jon to match my weird and eccentric with nothing but outright enthusiasm. And if I wanted to attend as a "Faun" (deer/goat-human hybrid), then he would be happy to accompany me as a Halfling/Hobbit rogue.

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