Ed, 30, had only a month left on his CatholicMatch subscription until it was over, and he didn’t plan to renew. He had been a member for two years, but he had never found the right match.
Luckily, before his membership had expired, he noticed Maria’s lovely face and profile. Maria, 29, had joined CatholicMatch two days prior. “I was initially attracted to her love for her family and her willingness to follow God's will. Like me, she answered ‘yes’ to all of the faith questions.”
Ed felt compelled to send her a message. “Even if she chose not to respond, I had to let her know that I thought very highly of her.”
Minutes later, Maria responded saying, “I like your profile too!”
The next day they had a longer chat session where they exchanged cell phone numbers, so they could text one another. Then a few days later their conversation continued on Skype. “I was stunned by how beautiful and elegant she looked. My next thought was that I really hoped for good chemistry. I wanted nothing more than to see her face on a regular basis!”
Ed was also amazed at how incredible their conversation was and how much the two of them had in common. “We are both very close to our families, both of our parents were married within a month of each other, and we even found similarities between our siblings' personalities.”
Marathon Skyping & Bogota Visit
From the moment he laid eyes on her on Skype, Ed felt like he and Maria belonged together. “Our conversations became more frequent and intimate. We spoke on Skype two or three times per week and I was so enthralled that I had a hard time leaving to go to sleep. Many times it was only after we finished speaking that we would realize that we had spoken for six to eight
hours!”
Even though Maria lived far away in Bogota, Colombia, they were growing closer. “We asked each other thousands of questions about views on life and our dreams. We shared details about ourselves that we had never shared with anyone else.”
Ed, who lives in Canton, Ohio, was very eager to see Maria in person and she was thinking the same thing. Maria invited him to come meet her and her family in Bogota. Less than a month after they met online, Ed booked his flight for Christmas Eve 2014. “She told me it was the best Christmas gift ever, but I felt like it was the best gift for me!”
Excitedly anticipating their upcoming meeting, they continued for the next month their routine of long, weighty conversations. “We both felt that God was guiding us and we were both at peace with each other. Our relationship was the deepest and most spiritual connection I have ever experienced. We were both counting down the days until we met in person.”
Ed felt excited and nervous to meet Maria. What if the chemistry they felt did not carry over in person? When they finally laid eyes on one another their fears dissipated. “I didn't know if Maria could get any better, but she was even more incredible in person.”
During his time with Maria, Ed was welcomed by her family. “ I had never felt so comfortable with anyone. The time we spent together was like living in a dream.”
Unconventional Proposal
A few days into Ed’s stay, he and Maria had a picnic lunch in a park across the street from where he was staying. Sitting in the grass, they were having a discussion about how much they both wanted to have a family together.
“I asked Maria, ‘What do I still need to do to convince you to marry me?”
She responded, "Nothing."
Ted excitedly said, "Let's start planning our wedding!"
He asked Maria to wait in the park because he had to get something from his room. “My leg had fallen asleep sitting in the grass, so I hobbled back to the apartment as quickly as possible and returned a few minutes later with a ziplock bag. I pulled a loose diamond out of some tissue paper from the bag and gave it to her.”
He had brought a loose diamond because a friend of Maria’s was a ring maker. “Neither of us is interested in the hype of a typical engagement, so it was perfect for both of us!”
Now Ed had the task of breaking the news to Maria’s parent about their unexpected engagement. During lunch with them, Ed was feeling so nervous that he could barely eat his food. When he had finally mustered up enough nerve to ask her parents for their blessings on his and Maria's marriage, he was met with stunned silence.
“After observing their initial expression, I was afraid of what they would say! I knew I would have some explaining to do about Maria and my decision. Her parents expressed understandable concerns, given that we hadn't known each other but a couple months, but they noted the depth and length of our conversations and that we were together because we love each other and believe it is God's will in our lives.”
Maria's parents quickly got over their initial shock and treated Ted like he was a member of the family. “I had loved her family from the moment we met, but the rest of the week I felt like part of their family.”
Ted and Maria continue to marathon Skype and they plan to see each other in person several times before their upcoming wedding in Bogota in January 2016. After the wedding, they will live near New York City.
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