Kelly and I took very different paths in life that crossed for the first time after which we were never apart again. While studying for our Mineralogy Laboratory final exam in the early weeks of December 2013 we spoke to each other for the first time.

This was not the first time I noticed Kelly however, I had my eye on her ever since she walked into class on the first day of lecture that semester. We were both taking the first real Geology class in our major at the University of Texas at San Antonio. I was busy waiting for lecture to start when she walked in and immediately had all my attention. I had never seen a woman who looked like her, she took a seat in the back of the classroom and that was that. I would notice her every day she came to class, but never spoke to her. One day in the middle of the semester Kelly started sitting behind me after a friend of hers took her seat. As we would pass hand samples of rocks that were being discussed during lecture I would hold the rock in my hand in a way as to try and get her to touch my hand even in the slightest way (creepy I know!) but she would pluck it out of my hand with the greatest degree of dexterity and finesse (foiled again!). As the semester wound down to its conclusion I thought that maybe in the coming months I would have a chance to talk to her, but my opportunity came while studying for the final.

Kelly was sitting in front of me with her friend, Rachel, studying. I was busy looking through a microscope trying to identify minerals on the thin section slide. There was one mineral that I could not identify, I thought this was a perfect opportunity to finally break the ice with Kelly. I began a small conversation with her, small talk at first, but then I asked her to take a look at the mystery mineral in the microscope. I gave her my seat and watched as she took control of the microscope and started to examine the mineral in every facet possible. She would look in the microscope and then in the reference book, making mental notes, comparing the literature to what she was seeing with her own eye. Immediately her passion and joy of the subject became apparent. She had a real sense of excitement and interest in discovering what this mineral was. I took a few looks at it myself, but I was stumped. After a little while longer we came to the conclusion that the mineral was Cordierite! It was a very profound moment for me when my interest in Kelly went from not merely the prettiest woman at UTSA (prettiest woman I have ever seen in fact!) but it was clear now how intelligent and thoughtful she was and I got to see that first hand.

1. Kelly and Matt enjoy yelling at Mark Cuban whenever they get a chance to see the Spurs beat the Mavs at the AT&T Center.

2. Kelly and Matt have won the second round of trivia played at Flying Saucer, very proud of that!

3. Kelly and Matt have a special camping spot in Yosemite National Park that they return to each trip they take there.

4. Matt first realized he was in love with Kelly while on a trip at Joshua Tree National Park.

5. Kelly is 1 for 1 in asking Matt out, on the other hand Matt is 0 for 3!

6. Kelly and Matt spent six weeks together in the summer of 2015 studying geology at Southern Utah University.

7. During their travels Kelly and Matt have seen: black bears, brown bears, bison, a wolf, a rattlesnake, elephant seals, and a whale.

8. Kelly and Matt have slept on the banks of the Colorado, Rio Grande, and Virgin Rivers. They have also spent nights camping in the snow at 8,000+ feet in elevation.

9. Kelly and Matt both have earned their Bachelor of Science Degrees in Geology from the University of Texas at San Antonio.

10. Kelly and Matt's first extended time together was climbing Guadalupe Peak (the highest mountain in Texas) and exploring Carlsbad Caverns with their friend Rachel.

My plan from the beginning was to be Kelly's best friend because she was mine from the very start. However not according to my plan I realized that I was indeed in love with Kelly while we were on our first California trip (the moment struck me like a thunderbolt while we were exploring an abandoned silver mine at Joshua Tree National Park). We began dating on October 14, 2014 after Kelly asked me out before her Geomorphology class that morning. It was my thoughts that we had been best friends for about a year, we should date a year and I would propose to her. In the meantime our relationship grew and flourished. We had more trips, more studying, more adventures. We would touch both the waters of the Pacific and Atlantic Oceans. After graduation and field camp together in Utah I accepted a position as a hydrogeologist in Columbia, South Carolina. This job kept us physically apart, but allowed us to realize the strength of our relationship and the true power of the love that we had for each other.

As Thanksgiving 2015 approached my preparations for asking Kelly to marry me were nearing completion. Kelly had shown me a picture of her dream ring many months before, and I had made a mental note of it and had it ready for the big moment. I flew home for Thanksgiving and made plans with Kelly to spend that weekend at Big Bend National Park, a place that had become very special to us. Previously I had conducted research by looking at photos of scenic locations throughout the park, ideally one that we had yet to lay eyes on. The summit of the South Rim Trail in the Chisos Mountains was my chosen spot. At the summit during the 14 mile hike you can see for miles as the Mountains drop away abruptly to the desert floor and the Valley of the Rio Grande, with the imposing Sierra del Carmen of Mexico in the background some 50 miles away.

We reached the park on Friday evening after Thanksgiving and decided to get a room at the lodge with plans to hike the next day. The weather was cool enough that the South Rim Trail was an option, but I wanted Kelly to choose to do the hike. In the morning we had a discussion on which trail to choose. With a little egging-on from myself Kelly accepted the daunting challenge of the South Rim Trail and we were off! After climbing from the Chisos Mountain Basin into the peaks we had worked up a big sweat and the temperature was starting to rise. We made our way through the backwoods and wilderness along the trail, keeping a good pace and taking time to talk and take pictures of the scenery. Nearing the summit we took a moment to stop and eat our lunch, my heart was racing and I had to do my best to keep my cool and not let on that I was preparing to ask the big question!

At the summit we sat and gazed out over the desert, we took pictures and basked in the autumn sunlight. I quietly and slowly gathered the engagement ring out of my pack and we were asked by a kind lady who was hiking with her kids if we would like to have our picture taken. "Yes Please!" I most definitely wanted this moment documented for the ages. After a few pictures posing for the kind stranger, I picked my moment and took a deep breath. I quickly dropped to my knee and faced Kelly.

"Kelly, will you marry me???"

"Matt!!! Yes!"

We both were overcome with emotion and embraced after I placed the ring on the finger of my now fiancee. Our photographer also began to shed tears and the moment was perfect! We basked in the moment, in the joy, and the exhilaration of this perfect life changing moment. Personally this moment changed everything about my life. I was now engaged to my best friend, to the most perfect creature I have ever met, literally to my dream woman, except that if I had dreamed of her I would have thought that she was too good to exist, yet here she was and now she is to be my bride!

The hike down the mountains was surreal. Hiking with my best friend, the gorgeous Kelly, and now we have committed our lives to one another. As we walked we made plans to spend the evening at the Chisos Mountain Lodge, have some drinks and really celebrate in style! We made it down at the end of our epic adventure. We went to the general store and bought a few Big Bend Brewery Beers managing to split one between us. Next we went to the lodge and sat near the bar and had dinner. Before our big celebration got underway we went back to the room and fell asleep! Both of us slept soundly for the next ten hours! Truly party animals!

The very best of days!