Our Story

Written by Hannah

Edited by Ethan

I’m so excited to tell you our story!

It’s a good one.

In January, after many relational and housing setbacks, I attended a future self-vision workshop.

The assignment had two parts:

The first part was to write down who we wanted to be in the upcoming year: what we would be doing for work, where we would be living, how we would be dressing, and who we would be spending our time with.

The second part asked us to take brave action in our lives to create the future we had visioned.

As a part of that brave action, I ended a relationship, pivoted my focus away from purchasing a condo and into creating a business where I felt supported by my supervisor and colleagues in the field of Mental Health Counseling.

And this is when everything changed!

Meanwhile, in the beginning of the new year, Ethan's apartment complex gave him the option to move into a two bedroom unit. At this time, Ethan had no need for a larger space but felt led to make the change anyways. He sat in each room of the apartment and wondered to himself, “why?” but he didn’t quite have an answer, only a feeling.

I met Ethan in May, when he graciously drove me, his dad, and mom to Ikea in Montreal to shop for new office furniture. Ethan’s mom and I had worked together as therapists in training and were planning to transition to new office spaces at the same location in June.

At Ikea, Ethan was kind, helpful, and inquisitive. We talked and shopped. As I was leaving, he asked if I’d like to go on a flight lesson with him in the near future. I said, “Yes!”

From there we began to spend more time together. We would spend our time walking, reading, laughing, and getting to know one another. Early on we took turns asking each other the deep and important questions about our needs, our compatibility, our priorities, and faith. And as each answer unfolded, our felt sense of connection and love deepened. And after some time, Ethan began to understand why he needed a larger space…

Now as I look back on the words I wrote in January, I know I was writing about Ethan, the love we share, and the home we are building together. In those passages I wrote, “I’m in a warm sunny house with so many windows and so many house plants; there is room to stretch and breathe and cozy up in the sun to read, write, and reflect; it smells like home; my kitty is with me. I feel so incredibly happy. I have a partner that I love, that I connect deeply with, who takes the lead when I can't, who I can trust, and who trusts me too. I feel excited to come home each night. There’s a sense of ease, playfulness, and growth. Our relationship feels timeless. Big feelings and big trust. He is loving, responsible, reliable, he cares for himself and others. There is an energy of creation.”

As I look back on those words, my eyes well with tears because they are all true. We share a warm sunny apartment; full of windows and house plants; Kitty Witty prances from room to room; we share a deep connection and a felt sense of trust and respect. There is a sense of silliness and play within our dynamic. And we feel so incredibly blessed to have met one another.

In many ways, this meeting feels like an answered prayer. That at the end of the day, even when we didn’t know the outcome of our choices, or where our decisions would lead, God had it, he had us in his mind.

So now, my vision has changed from “I” to “we”. Ethan and I are planning for our futures together. We would like to purchase a home, travel, build a family, and support our communities. We plan to grow in love and trust. We plan to take brave action when needed. We plan on laughing a lot, being silly and playful. And we plan on asking each other the deep and important questions along the way.

This is only the beginning and we are so excited to see where this next chapter takes us.

We have a feeling it’s going to be a good one!

With love and faith,

Hannah

Ethan

Kitty Witty

Things to Do

Bennington Battle Monument

Bennington Museum

Park-McCullough, Historic Governor's Mansion