Before there was

Or

There was.....

 

Arriving at college from the kingdom of Atlanta was a young (Jewish American) princess named Michelle
This was Michelle's first time moving away from her Kingdom and she was excited.

Also arriving at college was a young (overconfident) knight from the Country of Texas named Ian. This was also Ian's first time moving away from his country and he was anxious to see what this world had to bring.

There was another character in this story. Some call it fate, others luck, and for some Divine Intervention. We will call him/her/it Bob.

Bob knew before anyone else that these two were destined to be together, so he/she/it made sure they couldn't mess it up. Given how young and stupid they were, this was not an easy job.

First, Bob made sure they would live in the same building. There were a lot of people in this building though, so that might not be enough.

So Bob made sure Ian was living with "a guy who went to Michelle's camp, but not at the same time as Michelle". Bob knew that even though this is not really a connection, the power that is Jewish summer camp would ensure Michelle and Ian went to a party together on the first night of college.

When they met that first night, Ian looked upon Michelle and realized that he had never met a princess like her before, so full of Joy and beauty. Michelle looked upon Ian... and realized that she could still make it to the party at the AEPI house.

So Bob had to pull out the big guns and put them in a class together. Normally lordlings from the kingdoms of Ed School and Business School would never find themselves in the same classroom, so it took some doing to make sure they were connected that first semester.

Ian knew the only way to win the hand of princess was through valor and Svedka. He also knew that given time, Michelle would come to see him the same way he saw her. So he played the cards Bob dealt him and became an expert at the subject they were studying together so she would study with him.

Of course this happened to be "Intro to the Hebrew Bible", no small task for a Catholic to study up on enough to be an expert for a princess who studied 8 years in Hebrew. No one ever said Bob didn't have a sense of humor.

Midway through the first semester, they were close friends, and by Valentine's Day the first year of college, they were young and in love.

Like most fairy tales, the story did not end there. Over 10 years, 3 continents, and millions of smiles there love has only gone stronger. If you are reading this, you have likely been a key player in this story at some point yourself. And since this story is far from over, we will end this tale at the beginning, when luck, fate, or divine intervention took Michelle and Ian 1000 miles from home and put them in the same dorm, same party, and even the same class.