The first time I talked to Hannah, I was going through a period of change in my life. I had just graduated and was preparing to step into the professional world. I was skeptical about setups and the idea of meeting someone this way. I didn’t realize at the time that this wasn’t just any setup—it was one that would completely change my perspective.

At the time, I was heading to Philadelphia to present a paper. I had Hannah’s contact information and a few pictures, but we hadn’t spoken yet. Before leaving for my flight, I decided to send her a quick message. I introduced myself, mentioned how I got her contact, and added, “I think you’re very pretty.” That was it—I left it at that.

A week went by without a response, and to be honest, I had almost forgotten about her. After my trip, when I finally returned to my apartment after a long flight, I saw her reply. That single message sparked hours of conversation. We texted back and forth, sharing stories and getting to know each other. Encouraged by the connection, I thought it was the perfect time to ask her out on a date.

However, when I suggested meeting up, I was disappointed by her response. She said she was busy that weekend because she had plans to visit Minnesota. I took it as a sign that she wasn’t interested and decided to give her space, not texting her for a day. I told myself that if she reached out first, I’d know she meant what she said about being busy.

To my relief, she wasn’t lying—and I’m so glad I decided to text her again.

When we finally met in person at a Chinese restaurant, we were both a little awkward at first. I had picked a movie, Top Gun: Maverick, even though I’d already seen it with my friend Seth. I avoided suggesting anything Marvel-related, not wanting to overwhelm her with my interests on our first date. Despite the initial awkwardness, by the end of the evening, I was completely smitten.

Hannah was beautiful, smart (she reads 70 books a year!), and incredibly caring. I knew from that moment that I wanted to spend the rest of my life with her. She’s also been my biggest supporter, encouraging me to work on the project that I’m so passionate about today.

How can you summarize the love you share with another person? For me, our story is filled with millions of smiles, exciting adventures, vulnerable conversations, and a love strong enough to hold up the world. When we were first set up I didn't tell anyone but we talked via Snapchat and phone call for a while before meeting in person. Our conversations were awkward and towards the beginning there were a couple days he did not reply and I almost deleted his contact, deciding it was a dead end. Luckily I decided to give it another day! Our first date started at a horrible Chinese restaurant where we barely ate or talked then we went to a movie- Top Gun Maverick. There was a new Marvel movie that I would have preferred but was afraid to mention this because if he wasn't a Marvel fan... that would take some processing. We found out later he was also afraid to ask! So all is good. We really didn't say much but by the end of that first date I knew in my heart this was the man I had been searching for. We began "talking" on the phone more often. The "talking" was mostly awkward silence filled in with random questions but we ended up on a second date anyway! I began driving to Des Moines (1.5hrs) every 3 weekends then awhile later every other weekend, and eventually I was driving all the way to Ames (where Hamad's apartment was) almost every weekend.

A little over a year later I returned to Luther and visits became fewer but Hamad came and visited me as much as possible for both of our schedules. Each week, however, it became clearer and more certain that this was only going to be a short chapter in a long life together. In 2023 we began looking for a house which became harder and harder as the more we looked the house prices steadily increased, less houses were being put up for sale, and the houses we found seemed to all have collapsing foundations. In January 2024, however, our luck changed and by February we had a home!

As the school year wrapped up for me I knew Hamad had something up his sleeve when he planned a trip to Florida for us in June. Unfortunately, I was met with a series of medical mishaps so we had to cancel. Nonetheless, Hamad did not give up and on June 14th we went on a hot air balloon ride where he proposed which was an immediate yes! I could write an essay about the significance behind the hot air balloon itself but this is already longer than I intended! We have had a wild adventure since the proposal and many life changes. With every victory and challenge life throws our way our bond grows stronger.