Dear 100hookup,
November 2003:
A boy and a girl meet in a coffee shop for a morning date and cup of coffee. The boy has been dating for a week now, after being divorced shortly after his 19-year marriage. The girl has been on so many dates that she has lost count of all of them for many years now. Both are in their mid-forties – one year and 10 days apart. They chat over three cups of coffee and get to know each other better. They have so many things in common even though they have both taken such different journeys to get to this point in their lives. He tells lots of stories, and she cannot get the smile off of her face.
Fast forward to June 2006:
The boy and the girl get married at the home of the parents of the groom. They celebrate with friends and family and share a romantic, elegant outdoor wedding.
There is more to this story:
The boy had to get to know himself better after being married for nearly two decades, with three children. He dated. He even got into a relationship with another woman that lasted nine months. But ultimately, he knew that this new girl was his best friend and his soul mate.
The girl had to learn patience. She was smitten with this boy but knew that he would not be emotionally available for a while. She enjoyed their friendship without romance while she got to know him better. She knew that if they did get together that their union would be more powerful than anything ever experienced by either, and she did not want to force it.
Hence, they became great friends, had many laughs and good times together and are now madly in love, spending the rest of their lives together. They were engaged in December of 2005, when he surprised her with a brilliant diamond in the Caribbean waters of Puerto Rico.
Thank you, 100hookup, for introducing us!
Tip for other 100hookuprs: If it happened to us, it can happen to you!
Sheryl and Mike
Cranbury, New Jersey