We found each other when we needed it most. Tohib was coming off of a decade-long pursuit of a professional license when I was searching for myself in a field of grief. I mourned my mothers passing and fought my way through grad school while he persisted through exams, ultimately achieving his goal. WE MATCHED on Easter day, April 4, 2021. Our 1st date was 5 days later over pasta, cocktails and amazing conversations that carried us past the restaurant's closing time. We went to my place after, I got comfy and threw on a t-shirt with the words “Phenomenal Woman” written on it thinking nothing of it. His eyes lit up and that smile of his alluded to the fact that there was something more happening in the moment. As a dreamer, goal-setter and avid vision-boarder Tohib had set out many goals for himself; purchase and build a home on land by water, travel to all 7 continents and marry a woman like the one Maya Angelou wrote about in her poem. The sign was loud and clear. In the weeks to come we spoke over the phone, went on dates, canceled our Match.com subscriptions and poured into what felt like fate.

We made things official on May 1st, 2021 with the blessing of his senior dog Drake who I immediately fell in love with. Two months into knowing each other and we were off to our very first vacation, Hawaii! We were stalled in Newark, NJ after missing our flight and decided to make lemonade of the situation. We got drinks and shared our stories and struggles while we lowered our guards. We exchanged “I Love You’s” for the very first time in Hawaii while John Mayers XO played in the background. We discussed my mothers wanderlust heart, promised each other to travel in her name, to make lemonade whenever life hands us lemons and to always put forth our best effort. In the next few weeks, months and years we enjoyed our first holidays, concerts, musicals, met each other's families and friends as well as left stickers of my mothers signature scattered around London, Italy, France, Egypt, Qatar and Australia. Together we’ve crossed off 6 continents!

In October of 2023, we rallied a group of friends for a weekend in my motherland of Dominican Republic to celebrate both my father and Tohib’s birthday, a tradition they’ve shared since meeting. Under the disguise of his birthday we left our friends at the resort for the day to visit my father and along the way our cab driver offered a stop at a local beach in Puerto Plata. Tohib began to play a video montage of clips sent from close friends, a recording of my father giving his blessing, and surprised me with an intimate proposal accompanied by a personalized poem resembling Maya Angelou's Phenomenal Woman. With tears shed and full hearts we made it to my fathers, shared the news and celebrated their birthdays. We even took a trip down memory lane and visited locations I enjoyed as a child before returning to the resort. When we arrived I was surprised with a beautiful all-white engagement photoshoot with the ladies wearing red lipstick to honor my mother. It was truly the best day of our lives. We’ve learned that the foundation of any beautiful and long-lasting relationship is LOVE. Love helped us mourn the loss of Drake, helped us secure that land by the water that we’re now building our dream home and getting married on and continues to help us navigate every life transition. We can’t wait to marry the very best friend we’ve ever had… each other and enjoy honeymooning on that 7th contentment!