Six. One. Six.

Thanksgiving time is always full of nostalgia for me, now more than ever.

Around six years ago, the day before Thanksgiving, I got a letter that changed the course of my life, as I found out I would be serving a mission for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Donetsk, Ukraine. The experiences I had there, the people I met there, touched my soul in ways I never would have thought possible. Six years later, I can't throw it away.

[With my mission call, six years ago.]

Almost a year ago exactly, Sam got down on one knee on a beautiful, sunny, blue-skied, November Sunday and proposed to me in a quiet Maryland park. He didn't know he was going to propose that day until he woke up and thought, "I'm going to propose to Megan today." We had talked about getting married, but we were both expecting a later engagement. But he proposed. Spontaneously, without a ring (but with a call to my father). Without warning. He proposed. And I wouldn't have had it any other way.

[About an hour after getting engaged.]

And then, six months ago (exactly), Sam and I got married on a sunny day in late May. And soon after that, he moved up with me to Princeton. It has been quite the ride. I find it is hard to talk about marriage on social media (or even in my journal) without descending into cliches, and I will try not to here. But I will say that I am grateful for Sam's courage, curiosity, and kindness. He is incredible for making the choice not only to love me, but to move up here to Princeton, despite the fact that it took him away from connections and friends. We've both learned a lot these past six months. They have been beautiful, stretching, and deepening in ways both expected and unexpected.

So this weekend, I am grateful. I am grateful for graceful November days that bring surprises and bright May days that bubble over with goodness and happiness.  I am grateful for opportunities to learn and grow and stretch and become more than you realized. I am grateful for humility. I am grateful for dreams. I am grateful for a body that can walk, run, dance, kiss, embrace, cry, laugh, blush, touch, eat, and sleep. I am grateful for the support and care of family and friends. I am grateful that none of us is ever alone, and for connections that span across miles, years, and differences. I am grateful for eternal possibilities and capacities. And I am grateful for the ways love feels--comfortable, terrifying, powerful, simple, familiar, and new.

Wedding photos by Justin Hackworth