It was freshman year of college, August 2011, just a few days after my parents helped me move into the dorms at UMKC. Few of my suitemates said they met a couple of “cool” guys down the hall that I should meet. I figured, why not? As I approached Keyur and his roommate, I saw them trying to tie a rubber band from one door knob to the next. Keyur was so excited that he came up with a new way to prank his suitemate. I tried so hard to hold in my laughter as I introduced myself. Not sure whether it was the crazy pranks or his ability to make me laugh no matter the situation, but he quickly became my best friend. We made countless memories together throughout the rest of that year including going shopping, trying out new restaurants in KC, watching numerous movies, ice skating, making homemade desserts (our famous Oreo lasagna which we would devour in two days), going on midnight steak and shake runs, and many more. In August 2012, Keyur made it official…and the rest is history!
Now for a funnier version of how we met…you can read Keyur’s POV!
I was just a small town boy, born in raised in south Detroit.
No, that doesn’t sound right, south Flint?
No, that doesn’t sound right either, Grand Blanc, Michigan is more like it.
And she was just a girl raised in the Little Pebble, the Small Rock, or Too Small to Characterize Rock, Arkansas for our radiology friends.
We would end up meeting in the unlikeliest places in Kansas City, Missouri before Patrick Mahomes and the Chiefs would put the city on the map or before I knew what a good slab of barbeque ribs tasted like.
Fresh out of high school, boys being boys, the first week of class we were pulling pranks in the hallways, something with rubber bands on door handles or stacking cups in front of doors.
She was with a group of her friends coming to meet us boys, definitely acting our age, when I saw Shweta for the first time.
It was something I would never forget, she was smiling, laughing, and it would be something that I would continue trying to get her to do. It’s hard to believe, but back in the that day, when I was on text 200 out of a 250 text plan for the month and only a few days into the month, I knew I was going to be in trouble. We were inseparable for that first year of school and we quickly became best friends.
Looking back on the journey we have shared together, I can’t think of having it any other way. From meeting as kids and growing together over the next twelve years, I really consider myself the luckiest guy to have met someone that is as thoughtful, caring, and loving. From our time in Kansas City to our time on the east coast in New York City, Jersey Shore, and Philadelphia, she has truly made me a better person and I can’t wait to share the rest of my life with her.
By the time we went on our first official date…we had already hung out many times before. Hence, our first date felt more like the 100th date. Nevertheless, that didn’t stop us from trying to make the best impressions on one another. Keyur planned the whole evening out and took us to P.F. Chang’s (sounds boring I know; believe it or not it was my favorite restaurant at the time!) But if you want to hear about our very first hang out…. I guess I would say it all started during freshman year of college back when Subway was my “go to” meal. I had originally planned to grab lunch with a friend who bailed last minute. Being the sweet guy he is, Keyur stepped in and said he would go get lunch with me so I wouldn’t have to go alone. That led to many other fast-food runs to official date nights! Whether it was dinner date nights or traveling and hiking at national parks, every hang out is always a fun adventure with Keyur. I feel so lucky to have met such a funny, caring, and thoughtful person whom I cannot wait to grow old with. Looking over our times together over the past TWELVE years, I would not change a thing and I cannot wait for what the future has in store for us!
She had just finished her radiology board exams, she had a week of vacation, and I think she was ready to relax.
As we were on our way walking out of the Phoenix, Arizona airport, I think she was a little distracted by something the pilot had said on the plane. Did he say it was going to be 110 degrees or 115 degrees outside there? I don’t know if that was her idea of a good time or a relaxing trip after a grueling test, but it was all part of the plan to keep her on her toes.
We almost completely walked out of the airport just as she was starting to think that was really where I had planned what was turning out to be an underwhelming surprise trip when we doubled back and walked back into the airport.
I think that frown quickly turned into a smile when she read Kauai, Hawaii on the gate monitor. Now that’s more like it. Beach chairs, mai-tais, and relaxing tunes being played on some ukuleles. The look on her face when we got to our place and she walked out onto our Lanai for the first time to see and hear the crash of waves on the beach was priceless. We would spend the first few days of the trip exploring the island, taking in the beaches, and learning to pronounce Hawaiian words properly.
Now she had never been to Hawaii before, let alone Kauai and some of her favorite movies were shot or took place in Hawaii including Jurrasic Park and the smash hit romantic comedy, Just Go With It (yeah we’re big Adam Sandler fans, sorry to disappoint). I don’t think I have ever come close to surprising Shweta, so were we going to see the dinosaurs by air in a helicopter? On the ground with an open air jeep with Jeff Goldblum in the backseat? I do think she was a little surprised when we would end up getting into a private boat, just the two of us to take in the Napali coast.
My friends that know me already know that I like to dress for the occasion, so of course a nice pair of pastel shorts and a bright short sleeve button down was the fit. I think Duke Kahanamoku and the other Hawaiian surf kings would have approved. Now it would have been much easier to hide a bulky ring box in a three piece suit, but I think it may have given her a hint or two to what was going on.
So how did I get the ring box on to that boat with a thin shirt and a pair of shorts with no pockets? Shweta is a smart cookie and I think she was thinking the same thing when she didn’t see anything in my pockets. This would be a perfect opportunity for a proposal, why didn’t he bring it! Lucky for me I had my trusty runner belt under my shirt with the ring hidden away.
I remember dolphin fins weaving in and out of the water and it was quite the sight to see the pod jumping through the water into the oncoming waves. I think they may have been trying to show off for us. Despite their best efforts, what came next was even more special.
Imagine green valleys with pristine waterfalls and private beaches. The cathedral cliffs of the Napali coast and Honopu Valley towering over the coast and the reflection of the sun highlighting the mist of the lush greenery. This definitely was the perfect backdrop to what I was hoping would be an experience she would never forget.
Nothing really prepares you for the big moment and I’m sure Shweta would get a kick out of imagining me in my apartment getting down on one knee perfecting the motion of opening the ring box with a rehearsed speech to a picture of her on the ground. I think I was just worrying about not fumbling the ring box off of the boat and into the ocean.
With a little bit of luck, I did not end up becoming a viral video trying to salvage my proposal by attempting to scavenge the ring from the bottom of the ocean. All I would remember is the boat rocking in the waves and me getting down on one knee, the ring box opened in my hand, and Shweta turning around to see me as I would ask her if she would want to spend the rest of her life with me.
I don’t think I will ever forget the smile on her face as we would spend the next hour sipping champagne and exploring the coast to celebrate the occasion. She even got to wear a Haku lei/Hawaiian flower crown that a local girl had made and arranged to have for the proposal. She would wear it for the rest of the day and I could tell she was beaming with joy when people would let her know how nice it looked.
All in all, yeah, I think it was an okay story.
For those of you who don’t know, Keyur has always been the “planner” in our relationship. Every trip we go on (whether he likes it or not) he ends up planning and it ends up being one of the most relaxing vacation trips! So, a year before the proposal when Keyur said he wanted to plan my post-boards trip, I thought why not? (less work for me!). Throughout the year, Keyur thought it would be funny to playfully pretend to kneel down in front of me and then proceed to tie his shoes (apparently it was all part of his big plan to surprise me…sure.) So that year, I became very suspicious. Any trip we went on, I would look out for any clues I could find…sadly with no success. I finally gave up and studying for the boards was enough of a distraction.
As the time came closer for my post-boards trip, I had an inkling he was maybe planning on proposing but had no idea where we would be going. He went so far as to even hiding my boarding pass! Thank you to my mom who made sure I was dressed for the occasion by buying me few dresses beforehand (little did I know that all our families and friends were in on this secret.) We had a connecting flight in Arizona, which he pretended was our final destination. Even though I was hoping to sip my favorite drinks by the beachside, I figured how bad could hiking under the hot Arizona sun be! As we landed in Arizona, we even proceeded to walk towards baggage claim and almost out of the airport before turning back around towards another gate. By this point, I knew something was up! As we approached our gate and the sign which read Kauai, Hawaii… I had one of the biggest smiles on my face. I had never been to Hawaii before.
Keyur kept me on my toes by not proposing on every picturesque place we visited until the fourth day there. At last, Keyur surprised me with a private boat ride along the Napali Coast. By this point, I was convinced he was going to propose on the boat. I tried looking around to see where Keyur was hiding the ring because his pockets looked flat! Found out later, he hid the ring in his runner’s belt under his shirt! After over an hour on the boat watching cute dolphins swim, the captain of the boat took us into a small cave-like area of the coast (I guess the captain was in on it too.) Keyur then pretended he was thirsty and asked me to bring him a bottle of water from back of the boat. As I was walking back towards the front of the boat with water in hand, there he was on one knee… with the perfect ring in hand and a gorgeous backdrop! As he started giving his speech, I was surprised I actually had happy tears rolling down my sunburned cheeks. After all the exams I had ever taken in my life, this was the easiest question I had ever encountered. I was on cloud nine! However, immediately after saying “YES!”, the boat brought us all down to earth... literally. The waves were back. Finally it came time for the best part of all… the celebratory ice cream! (Anyone who knows me knows my love for ice cream! But I guess... maybe now it can take a back seat to my new Fiancé!)
I always used to give Keyur a hard time that he was never good at surprises. I guess he proved me wrong. Few days after returning from Hawaii, we attended Keyur’s residency graduation that Friday night. The next morning, already tired from the travel and staying out late for his graduation celebration, I thought what a great time to sleep in the next morning. For those of you who already know, I am NOT a morning person. So, when Keyur made me wake up early to get brunch, I was already grumpy and upset. Keyur eventually convinced me to get ready for brunch. Walking into White Dog café in Philadelphia, all I was thinking about was when I would be able to go back to sleep! Keyur even got the restaurant hostess to join in on the surprise. So, when the thought of my family potentially being there to surprise me entered my head, it was quickly suppressed by the hostess asking “table for two? right this way…” Few moments later, my entire family and our closest friends, most of who flew in from all over the country, popped out from behind a wall for the most amazing surprise of my life! We celebrated the rest of the weekend with our families and best friends…and of course more ice cream! No doubt this weekend will forever be one of my favorite memories!
As someone who is very hard to surprise, I gotta say hats off to Keyur for pulling it off! From the time we met until now, we have shared so many experiences and have grown a lot. I continue to look up to him as he always supports me no matter what and makes me a better person every day. I am truly marrying my best friend!