On an overcast April 1st, John and Arvin had their first date at one of John’s favorite Thai restaurants in downtown Indy. John was awestruck by Arvin’s brave decision to order the spiciest curry the restaurant had to offer as he settled for his good old ‘medium’. Despite our differences in heat tolerance, the two of us found that we had much in common – a passion for cooking challenging and exciting recipes, performing music, and battling it out in board/video games. Our conversations continued at the Indianapolis Zoo, where the rain thankfully held out. Never one to miss an opportunity, John decided to invite Arvin to one of the coveted MSTP game nights occurring that evening. While the game of Monopoly did not go as planned, everyone, and John most of all, knew that Arvin was the one.

Arvin eventually moved to Providence, Rhode Island for his postdoc while John remained in Indy to finish medical school. For one of John’s visits, Arvin planned a weekend trip to Martha’s Vineyard full of exciting food, hiking, and sight-seeing. John ever-so-casually added an evening visit to the Edgartown Lighthouse, with plans for a sunset proposal. John soon realized that the light faded much more quickly on the East Coast than he anticipated. By the time the two of them reached the lighthouse, it was nearly pitch-dark outside. Determined to see the proposal through, John got down on one knee, and thankfully, the photo was saved by “Night Mode” on an iPhone camera, taken by an amateur photographer who just happened to be there to take night photography. Which...made the photo appear as though it was taken in the middle of the day, the moon disguising itself as the sun overhead. Despite the hiccup, the cool, breezy night on the beachfront did not dampen the warmth and love the two of them shared in that moment.