Our Story
I'm resurrecting this story from the cob-webbed tabs of our wedding website. It's humorous to look back at our 'young love'. We were teenagers when we met. Teenagers! That blows my mind. For your enjoyment; please keep ridicule to a minimum. ;)
The First Encounter
Adam's Version (what really happened)
During my second year at Moody I was sitting in the SDR (Student Dining Room) having lunch with some friends of mine. All of a sudden I hear this loud scream and see a girl romping past me on the other side of the table. Now, first of all, I'm a little annoyed at this, being that it was decently quiet and I was enjoying the conversation with my friends. Well once this "little thing" came along all of that was destroyed. No longer was it quiet, no longer were my friends talking, all attention was drawn to her...this little, shrill voice, always talking, always hyper (and very attractive I must add) young woman.
This incident, however, was not a lone experience. Oh no, this happened at nearly every meal time. Somehow God saw it fit to "bless me" with this woman who wanted all the attention, all the time, during every one of my meals. The thing about it all was that she was on my sister floor; so during meals, chapel, even sports activities, she was always there. Needless to say it wasn't "love at first sight".
We never had any conversations. We didn't really talk a whole lot, we just interjected occasionally when the other was talking, or if our names were brought up in a conversation. That all changed one night while walking back from a Frisbee game.
We had just won our game, and the team was walking back. I was a little hyper after the game so I was "tripping" people from behind, or putting pressure on their strong side leg when they were walking. So I'm doing this to basically everyone, and then I come to Julie. Without really giving much thought to it I kick her right foot over to her left one and make her stumble a little. She caught herself and was fine; but instead of letting it go or laughing like everyone else she becomes slightly hostile. After regaining her balance she spun around, let her right arm fly, and landed a sucker punch right straight into my gut. The force of the impact was so severe that I doubled over, gasping for air. The wind was knocked completely out of me.
Sure I know what you're thinking, how could my big strong self let such a little innocent woman like Julie do that to me. Well let me tell ya, she's stronger then she looks. I wasn't expecting it either, especially from someone I hadn't even been introduced to. After she realized what happened, and she saw the pain that she has caused me, she drew herself back, and with as much confidence as she could muster said, "I'm so sorry...Dave." and walks away. And THAT is how I first met Julianna Kang.
This incident, however, was not a lone experience. Oh no, this happened at nearly every meal time. Somehow God saw it fit to "bless me" with this woman who wanted all the attention, all the time, during every one of my meals. The thing about it all was that she was on my sister floor; so during meals, chapel, even sports activities, she was always there. Needless to say it wasn't "love at first sight".
We never had any conversations. We didn't really talk a whole lot, we just interjected occasionally when the other was talking, or if our names were brought up in a conversation. That all changed one night while walking back from a Frisbee game.
We had just won our game, and the team was walking back. I was a little hyper after the game so I was "tripping" people from behind, or putting pressure on their strong side leg when they were walking. So I'm doing this to basically everyone, and then I come to Julie. Without really giving much thought to it I kick her right foot over to her left one and make her stumble a little. She caught herself and was fine; but instead of letting it go or laughing like everyone else she becomes slightly hostile. After regaining her balance she spun around, let her right arm fly, and landed a sucker punch right straight into my gut. The force of the impact was so severe that I doubled over, gasping for air. The wind was knocked completely out of me.
Sure I know what you're thinking, how could my big strong self let such a little innocent woman like Julie do that to me. Well let me tell ya, she's stronger then she looks. I wasn't expecting it either, especially from someone I hadn't even been introduced to. After she realized what happened, and she saw the pain that she has caused me, she drew herself back, and with as much confidence as she could muster said, "I'm so sorry...Dave." and walks away. And THAT is how I first met Julianna Kang.
The Beginning
Julie's Version
I met Adam during my first semester at Moody Bible Institute. At Moody, the women's and men's dorm floors are paired off for intramurals, eating arrangements, and social events. Adam was on my first brother floor.
I have very few early memories of Adam, although I know we played intramurals together because I was the sports representative from my floor and he was ALWAYS participating in intramurals. Besides...Adam was dating someone else.
During my second semester at Moody, I was cast as Martha Brewster in the spring play, "Arsenic and Old Lace". I do remember that Adam was the one who had encouraged/forced me to audition in the first place. After opening night, there was a mysterious, rather large, and beautiful bouquet of flowers on my desk. I assumed that the ladies of my floor had given them to me. I was wrong.
All weekend I wondered who had given me the mysterious gift. I thought, "no boy would spend that much money on flowers and not want to be acknowledged". Not to mention, they were my favorite flowers, especially snap-dragons. A few days later, one of my friends, Katie, came into my room and announced that, "If you want to find out who gave you the flowers, go downstairs to the Commons in ten minutes". I was so nervous! Even more so, because I had no idea who could be waiting for me. I had five guesses--in alphabetical order, so Adam's name was quite naturally, at the top. A is for Adam.
When I got downstairs, I was too scared to go into the Commons (which is a place to eat on campus). Instead, I sent two groups of spies! They came back with news of there only being one guy who was sitting completely alone doing homework and eating ice cream. Adam Johnson. I had secretly hoped that it would be him, but I was still unsure.
Probably one of the most awkward moments in my life, I approached Adam and cleared my throat. I told him that I was just waiting to meet "someone". We talked about basically nothing, which made me think, "Oh great. Whoever wanted to meet me down here, saw me talking with Adam and ran away". But as I got up to leave, Adam said--"Wait, did your meeting have anything to do with snap-dragons?".
I was so mad. :)
I have very few early memories of Adam, although I know we played intramurals together because I was the sports representative from my floor and he was ALWAYS participating in intramurals. Besides...Adam was dating someone else.
During my second semester at Moody, I was cast as Martha Brewster in the spring play, "Arsenic and Old Lace". I do remember that Adam was the one who had encouraged/forced me to audition in the first place. After opening night, there was a mysterious, rather large, and beautiful bouquet of flowers on my desk. I assumed that the ladies of my floor had given them to me. I was wrong.
All weekend I wondered who had given me the mysterious gift. I thought, "no boy would spend that much money on flowers and not want to be acknowledged". Not to mention, they were my favorite flowers, especially snap-dragons. A few days later, one of my friends, Katie, came into my room and announced that, "If you want to find out who gave you the flowers, go downstairs to the Commons in ten minutes". I was so nervous! Even more so, because I had no idea who could be waiting for me. I had five guesses--in alphabetical order, so Adam's name was quite naturally, at the top. A is for Adam.
When I got downstairs, I was too scared to go into the Commons (which is a place to eat on campus). Instead, I sent two groups of spies! They came back with news of there only being one guy who was sitting completely alone doing homework and eating ice cream. Adam Johnson. I had secretly hoped that it would be him, but I was still unsure.
Probably one of the most awkward moments in my life, I approached Adam and cleared my throat. I told him that I was just waiting to meet "someone". We talked about basically nothing, which made me think, "Oh great. Whoever wanted to meet me down here, saw me talking with Adam and ran away". But as I got up to leave, Adam said--"Wait, did your meeting have anything to do with snap-dragons?".
I was so mad. :)
The Summer of Difficulty
So after my "dramatic" event with the flowers, Julie and I started talking a bit more and spending some time together. This really reached a high point over spring break, when we would spend hours on the phone with each other. However that quickly fell apart and we went back to our separate lives. It wasn't until that summer when things began to pick up again. I had liked her for the time being, and wanted to pursue a relationship, however I never told her that. So she was on a completely different channel then I was, and by the time she went home for the summer nothing had been solved.
I continued to call her during the summer until one fateful night when we decided it would be best if I didn't call her so much anymore. So with that, I deleted her number from my phone and tried to move on with my life. But, as I soon found out, I never really moved on.
When school started again in August, and I saw her again for the first time in 2 1/2 months, all the feelings came back again. This time I was going to do whatever I could, succeed or fail, to try and make something happen.
So I began to pursue her to the limit of my patience. She was very stubborn, and very distant, I had little or nothing to go on at times; but as I said before, I was determined to make something happen. We spent more time together, going for walks nearly every night through September and the beginning of October. We worked on improving our communication and shared our feelings for one another.
Finally, on October 5, at 1:35 in the morning, I asked her, "Where do you think we should go with this relationship?" and she responded, in an ever so nonchalant way, "I think we should date."
And as they say, the rest is history...
I continued to call her during the summer until one fateful night when we decided it would be best if I didn't call her so much anymore. So with that, I deleted her number from my phone and tried to move on with my life. But, as I soon found out, I never really moved on.
When school started again in August, and I saw her again for the first time in 2 1/2 months, all the feelings came back again. This time I was going to do whatever I could, succeed or fail, to try and make something happen.
So I began to pursue her to the limit of my patience. She was very stubborn, and very distant, I had little or nothing to go on at times; but as I said before, I was determined to make something happen. We spent more time together, going for walks nearly every night through September and the beginning of October. We worked on improving our communication and shared our feelings for one another.
Finally, on October 5, at 1:35 in the morning, I asked her, "Where do you think we should go with this relationship?" and she responded, in an ever so nonchalant way, "I think we should date."
And as they say, the rest is history...
Farmer Boy
Learning the finer points of John Deere, Sod, the Packers, and Irregation Lines.
Between the time that Adam first told me he, "might have feelings for me", and when we started dating with the intention of getting married, were six months. If I could talk to my younger self during that half of a year I would give slightly-younger-Julie a lot of advice. One of the biggest lessons that we learned through this stage was that God's timing is most important. We wavered between being "just friends" to trying to be "more than friends". At first, I thought that Adam and I were too different to even be in the same room together. However, I soon discovered that although our personalities seemed opposite, we actually shared many interests and passions. Adam and I both enjoy history and teaching, and we both want to spend our lives ministering to kids, and pursuing Christ as our Savior. As I got to know Adam better, I began to to appreciate his deep love for the Lord, his strong work ethic (isn't that romantic?), his generosity, kindness, loyalty, and patience. Most of all, I admired his persistence: ever since I was a little girl, I knew that I would only marry the guy who never gave up. What is more exciting than preparing to marry your best friend?
Above all, we have learned that God is the one who holds our relationship together. We firmly believe that we do not deserve one another but that God has been the one who has been graciously leading us towards marriage.
Suburban Girl
What exactly IS a back yard?
"We will fight them on land, we will fight them in the air, and we will fight them in the sea. We will never give up, we will never surrender." -Winston Churchill
History has always been my passion. I remember in 7th grade getting my first big set of Civil War books and just being super excited. I often wonder if my parents worried about me getting excited over books. Anyways, out of this passion the Lord has drawn out my desire and spiritual gift of teaching. I believe that this is what He has in store for me, and I am willing to see that it is done. Julie and I both share that passion, we love history, we love to teach, and we love the Lord.
Getting to know Julie has been an adventure, there is no better word for it. Finding out about her passion for history, and discussing issues during WWII and the great depression have been wonderful. Attending shows in the city, Phantom of the Opera, My Fair Lady, and Wicked, have all been amazing (My Fair Lady was my favorite). But beyond the likes and dislikes, deeper then the hobbies and interests, lies what matters the most, her heart. She has a desire to serve the Lord, and out of that desire flows her love, kindness, gentleness, patience, endurance, hard work, and the desire to do her very best. She is such a smart woman that often times I find myself just listening to her knowledge about the Holocaust or issues about the Trinity and End times. I could tell you stories and write books about how amazing she truly is, but if you know her, then you know what I'm talking about.
It is only by God's grace that He has allowed us to be together, and to begin our lives together. I thank Him every day for that gift, and I pray that I will never take it for granted.
History has always been my passion. I remember in 7th grade getting my first big set of Civil War books and just being super excited. I often wonder if my parents worried about me getting excited over books. Anyways, out of this passion the Lord has drawn out my desire and spiritual gift of teaching. I believe that this is what He has in store for me, and I am willing to see that it is done. Julie and I both share that passion, we love history, we love to teach, and we love the Lord.
Getting to know Julie has been an adventure, there is no better word for it. Finding out about her passion for history, and discussing issues during WWII and the great depression have been wonderful. Attending shows in the city, Phantom of the Opera, My Fair Lady, and Wicked, have all been amazing (My Fair Lady was my favorite). But beyond the likes and dislikes, deeper then the hobbies and interests, lies what matters the most, her heart. She has a desire to serve the Lord, and out of that desire flows her love, kindness, gentleness, patience, endurance, hard work, and the desire to do her very best. She is such a smart woman that often times I find myself just listening to her knowledge about the Holocaust or issues about the Trinity and End times. I could tell you stories and write books about how amazing she truly is, but if you know her, then you know what I'm talking about.
It is only by God's grace that He has allowed us to be together, and to begin our lives together. I thank Him every day for that gift, and I pray that I will never take it for granted.
The Engagement Story!
After returning to Moody from the ACSI (Association of Christian Schools International) Conference, Adam and I were both exhausted. I went up to my room to rest, while Adam went to his room to check the weather...like a good farm boy. Little did I know, he was preparing to propose on Sunday. However, the weather on Sunday was going to be cold and with a forecast of rain. So Adam decided that he would propose that night instead.
It had been my idea to go to the beach that night. It is one of our habits to watch the waves of Lake Michigan when it is cold and dark. We were to meet at 8:30pm, and Adam said that he was going to read me a story. Being Elementary Education majors, I was totally excited. I wondered what book he was going to read. Dr. Seuss? Then he corrected himself and said that he was going to "tell" me a story. This was my first suspicion. I told myself that it could not possibly be true that he was going to propose, since he did NOT have a ring yet. I was absolutely convinced that he didn't have a ring because we had fought about it the week before. I remember telling my roommate that, "Adam wasn't that good of an actor".
In our argument, I reminded Adam about the pressures of wedding planning. Student teaching, was right around the corner for both of us. How did he expect me to plan a wedding in China? He played along and told me that I was only thinking of the wedding day, and not about the committment that was involved afterwards. Little did I know, he already had the ring in his desk drawer!
Back at the beach....
The Lake was unusually dark, almost ominous, and we were completely alone because of the freezing temperature. Adam started the story of how, "once upon a time, there was a boy and a girl..." He recounted an incident that had happened the year before when he had thrown my Born shoes into Lake Michigan. Last year, he had written messages in the sand to me as I chased him around, trying to get my shoes back.
Then Adam told me that I had to follow him once more as he started writing messages to me in the sand again. I began to wonder if maybe he DID have a ring! I remember that the last two messages said, "But now I know...'do you like me?'" (which was one of our jokes). As I turned around, Adam was on one knee, holding a small box.
Of course I said YES! As he slipped the most gorgeous ring onto my finger, fireworks from Navy Pier exploded in the sky.
It was perfectly enchanting night. I could not have asked for a more lovely engagement.
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