The first time I met her, it was in a friends house. I was told that someone would be there who I should meet. It was a baby shower and I was supposed to bring the food. So I went to the caterers and got the food and came there, not really expecting much. Actually I wasn't even thinking at all, because at the time I wasn't going to church, and the girl I was supposed to meet was in a Bible seminary. I was not expecting anything at all, to be honest. Well, she showed up with her parents, and I was standing in the foyer along with the rest of my family. She was dressed well, and did not make any eye contact. She looked as if she did not want to be there. I met her parents, just said hi, and then her parents left. So, my mom's friend tried to get us into the kitchen so we could talk. So I was talking to her, and kind of looking at her, and then I could see, all of a sudden she was not interested at all. Talk about getting the cold shoulder. I immediately got the hint. So I tried to say a few other things, and then I just went to the other room. She may have started talking to someone else, I don't remember.

Later on, we got a chance to talk some more. She was speaking so softly, I could barely hear her. We talked about lots of things, but the thing that impressed me was that she was real. I was tired of all the fake people. People who were trying to be "someone." Trying to be fashionable, trying to be rich, trying to be religious, accepted, popular, cool, or other things. I figured out that she was in the seminary because she wanted to be. And she liked music. And I later found out, from her, that she used to run track in high school and was interested in running a marathon. Just like me. She was also attractive. For some reason, I liked her mouth, and her smile. Her smile was a half-smile, just barely showing her teeth. And her mouth, kind of curved up at the corners, in a perpetual smile, almost. I also noticed she had lots of energy, she would fidget now and then, and sometimes, when she was talking, she would move her body in a way that suggested she was very passionate about what she believed. So she WAS real.

There were some chocolate covered strawberries on the desert table, and I told her to try one. She said that she didn't know how to eat them. I told her just to take a small bite at a time. If I was in the same situation, I would not have even tried the strawberry, nor would I have admitted not knowing how to eat a strawberry. Although I didn't know it at the time, this showed me innocence and honesty, and a willingness to try.