We met in 2012 during our gap year in England. While we were aware of one another's existences, we never engaged in anything more than casual small talk (we also were on a hockey team together, but Max didn't / doesn't remember that in spite of evidence to the contrary). After school, we went our separate ways. Unbeknownst to us, five years later, our paths crossed again in Portland, Oregon thanks to two mutual friends. Our first adventure ended up with us in the back of an old pickup truck after we had to hitchhike to Lake Trillium due to a little gas issue (ie. the car ran out of gas). Sophie was charmed by Max’s confidence and witty sense of humor, meanwhile Max was captured by Sophie's free-spirited approach to life and empathetic nature (I, Max, would attest to the fact that these things definitely don't come naturally to me).

Max proposed to Sophie in Cannon Beach, a quaint coastal town in Oregon that Max visited frequently while growing up and a place that Max and Sophie had spent a lot of time in together. It is a spot that has and always will be a place of rest and solitude for us, a sentiment that has only been further magnified by this beautiful, new memory we have there. (If you ever want to visit with us -- we will make any excuse to go!)