Avery & Luke
Avery & Luke
Our Story
Both Sides of Our Story
Lukes perspective:
Avery and I met in tenth grade. On our first day of school, we sat across from each other at lunch, and that is where our friendship began. We quickly became friends and sat near each other in almost every class for the rest of high school. Toward the end of our senior year, we began to get closer. I remember right after graduation, we spent a lot of time watching movies together and hanging out with our friends. Pretty soon after graduation, I started thinking she was really sweet and exceptionally beautiful. We went on our first date, went to Universal, and enjoyed spending time together at the beach. Not long after we started dating, I left for basic training and OSUT at Fort Benning. For 22 weeks, the only communication we had was a 30-minute phone call a week and letters in the mail. The separation was hard, but we both put a lot of effort into making sure we could be there for each other and show each other that we loved each other, even being so far apart. She sent more letters to me by herself than most other guys got in my platoon in total. Her letters always included pictures, which kept me going when I missed her and wished I could be with her. While I could not send pictures, I picked flowers for her and sent them in the letters I wrote. After two weeks home in December, I left for my first duty station in Washington state, and since then, we have only been together for a little over two weeks total. She constantly keeps me smiling and laughing. When we are together, it is hard to keep up with her, but I love her bubbly attitude and unmatchable energy. She is super crazy but loves a good nap, which I appreciate the balance. I am so thankful that Avery was there for me and never left my side while I was in basic and still now living across the country from each other. I love her more than anything in the world, and I cant wait to marry her and never let her go.
Avery's perspective:
Luke and I met in 10th grade and almost instantly became best friends. We saw each other inside and outside of school almost everyday for the next two and a half years. The week leading up to graduation, Luke and I began to get a lot closer. A few weeks after we graduated highschool Luke asked me out. For the first time in a long time,I felt like myself. We spent the entire night laughing and asking each other pointless questions–it might have been just me asking the questions, I don't remember. On our first date we planned to only go to dinner, but towards the end of our meal, Luke asked if I wanted to go watch a movie. I told him there was nothing out at the time other than a movie we had already seen with our friends and Luke said, “ I don't care, I just don't want to leave you”. I think that was the moment I fell in love with him. We bought movie tickets and drove to the mall to watch “Dr. Strange”. When we got there, we realized we had bought tickets for a movie theater in Vero beach and had to rebuy the tickets. Over $40 in movie tickets later, we had extra time and decided to walk around the mall. Luke bought me a sweater because I was cold and didn't have one. While we were in line to buy the sweater, I asked Luke, “When are you going to ask me to be your girlfriend?”.
He answered and said, “I thought you already were.''
I responded, “No, you have to ask me… and if you thought we were already dating, why haven't you held my hand?”.
Luke then went on to explain to me that it was because his hands were sweaty. We watched the movie and he brought me home. There aren't many nights that I wish I could relive, but if I could, that would be one of them. That night I realized that the “better” that God had for me was right in front of me the entire time, and it was Luke.
June 20, 2022, Luke left to spend the next six months at Fort Benning, Georgia.For those six months, we communicated only through letters and one 30 minute phone call a week, which wasnt always guaranteed. Those six months were probably the hardest of my life. We had to accept that no matter what, life had to move on no matter how many miles apart we were. Because of those six months apart, we had the opportunity to fall in love with each other as people and connect emotionally and spiritually before anything else. I lived glued to the mailbox and learned to appreciate the smallest things that I never had before, like the sound of his voice, his handwriting, and the memories we shared together. Our separation left us always referring each other back to Joshua 1:9 in times of struggle and heartache. Through this separation we did not only grow in our relationship with each other, but also with Christ. After a two week leave in December, Luke was stationed at Fort Lewis in Washington state. We got to spend four days together throughout the next six months following that.
July 1, 2023 on the same beach he asked me to be his girlfriend, he asked me to be his wife. The time apart, miles between us, sleepless nights, endless tears and heartache have never been enough to make us give our relationship a second thought. Luke is my best friend. He has been there for me through the many, many tears I've cried and has never failed to show or tell that he loves me. I am truly grateful for Luke, the things he has taught me, the things he has done for me, and the challenges he has helped me overcome since the day I met him five years ago. There’s no one else in the world I’d rather spend my life growing, learning, and experiencing life with. I love him more than anything else in the world and I can’t wait to marry him.