Later tonight I'm flying out to Minnesota to see Emily. She came out here to visit a little more than a week ago, but it feels like an eternity. I can barely contain my excitement at the moment, which is why I chose this topic to write about. Just a warning: this will be corny. At this point I don't care. I'm 12 hours from seeing the woman I love.
Anybody who knew me in high school can attest to the fact that I was not really good at monogamy. Sure I had girlfriends, but I never dated anyone for too long. Truth be told, I was a pretty big jerk a lot of the time. By the time I graduated high school, I was pretty sure that I did not have any interest in ever settling down.
On September 5, 2010, my perspective changed. I was at a random college party and made out with some random girl. Did I know at the time that this person would mean as much to me as she does? No of course not, I was just a horny college freshman looking for some action. She added me on Facebook. I messaged her. We met up a few times to hang out. Before I knew it, I couldn't stand being away from this girl. I had come to college looking to do what college kids do: sleep around. By my third week at school, there was literally only one girl that I had any interest in hanging out with. However, that first semester was a roller coaster for the two of us.
Unfortunately, Em and I were not entirely on the same page. While I was trying to take Emily out on dates and 'woo' her, she was having none of that. Multiple times that semester I would walk into a party and see her making out with other guys. I'm not the jealous type, I never really have been. But seeing her with someone else made me feel something I had never really felt: inferiority. If that's not the single most arrogant statement you've ever read, than I don't know what is. But it's the truth.
We stopped hanging out late in the final, and I tried to forget about her. It was no use though, even though she clearly was not interested, I was a mess inside.
As I'm sure you've guessed, the story does not end like that. Blah blah blah, long story short, we fall in love and have now been together for two and a half years. My previous record for longest relationship before that was like 5 or 6 weeks. On top of that, there's something pretty cool about waking up every day and knowing that I have found the person that I will spend the rest of my life with. When I say Emily means the world to me, I mean just that. I would do anything for her.
If any of you have been in love, I'm sure you understand what it's like. We have a reputation at Trinity of being inseparable, which is the truth. With the exception of class and practices (wrestling for me, ice hockey for her), we are together nearly 100% of the time. I haven't slept in a bed without her since freshman year (with the exception of road trips for our respective sports). There is something special about waking up next to someone you care about so deeply. When people ever ask why we spend so much time together, I answer with, "If you had the choice of spending a moment with the person you love more than anything else in the world, or not spending a moment with them, which would you choose?" That's all our time together is, a series of moments that together make up a lifetime.
We are perfectly compatible in so many ways, and in so many others we balance each other outs. We have many similar interests (*cough**cough*, Game of Thrones). We both love to read and watch sports (thankfully, Boston teams are WAY better than Minnesota teams, because I could not handle it if the reverse were true). But at the same time, she completes me (I told you this would be corny). She is patient, always understanding of situations and calm when she needs to be. I'm not. I once spent ten minutes screaming at a car driver in front of me because they refused to drive faster than the speed limit. She is always so optimistic, and I get cranky really easily. The most important thing that Emily does for me, however, is that she makes me want to be a better person. I truly believe that she brings out the best in everybody, especially me. That, in and of itself, is worth holding onto.
Love is a truly special experience. Every day, I remind myself how lucky I am to have found it. A person ( who by the way, is smoking hot) that I can confide in day in, and day out. A person who can brighten my dreariest days. A person who is unquestionably, my best friend. I hope on day, you all can feel as lucky as I do. If you have already found someone who makes you feel like this, than you're one of the lucky ones too.
I often think about what Emily and my wedding will be like. I brainstorm what kind of food we'll have, where we'll honeymoon to, etc. No offense to Nils and Jack, but if I really did choose my best friend to be my best man, then Emily would have another job on her plate besides being the bride.
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