2020. A year to remember, but one most of us would also like to forget.

A treasured employee lost his father in January 2020, and I attended the funeral. It was in a Presbyterian church in Van Buren. The old pews and the songs made me want to get back to worshiping regularly at a church. Since opening my store and working every weekend, I’d moved my long training runs to Sundays and eventually stopped attending church. I wasn’t sure what I was looking for or what I needed, but I felt a change of some kind was in order. After messaging a friend about Covenant Presbyterian Church in Fort Smith, I thought, “After my race in March, I’ll go check it out.”

It certainly wasn’t love at first sight, or even love at first try. Running and I were set up on a date by my old college roommate, Carrie Daniels. Like any first date, it was awkward. Both of us trying to figure each other out—asking questions (Who are you? What are you looking for?), proposing small challenges (You think you can do this? You think you can handle me?). After the initial awkwardness of our first few dates, we hit a groove.