How We Met
Our story is like no other (or so we have been told) because I met Matt through a freelancing site called Fiverr. I wanted to start a travel blog and my brother told me I could go on a site called Fiverr and pay someone to help me. I wanted a successful travel blog and that’s exactly what I set out to do! I messaged 3 people and Matt was the first to answer, from there we worked together for 3.5 months.
There was something that really intrigued me about him because what is a guy going for his Ph.D. in Chemical Engineering making websites and owning a digital marketing company? I loved how passionate Matt was with work, how his views on life were the same as mine and a nice guy who I could call my friend.
We started as friends but in May I decided to fly down to Philadelphia, PA to see Matt and learn more about digital marketing. There was something special about him and I needed to meet him.
At the time, I never believed in love at first sight or that you were destined to be with one person but on May 13, 2017, that all changed.
As I flew into Philadelphia Internation Airport, Matt came to pick me up at the airport and I was excited but nervous.
If you have ever watched One Tree Hill you will understand this moment that I’m about to reference. When Matt picked me up we had a “Lucas and Peyton moment” as I like to call it. Matt was parked under the Delta sign and as I walked towards it, someone passed in front of me, and on the other side was Matt holding a sign that said: “pick up for Michelle Barker.”
Instantly, he got out of his car and I couldn’t help it but I just kissed him! It was love at first sight and I still have a huge smile when I think about when we first met. It felt like we had known each other for years. I was wrong all along, love does exist no matter how far the distance is between you.
We were living 1,732 miles/2,787 km apart but that didn’t stop us. I would fly to see Matt every two weeks and once we had to go 5 weeks without seeing each other. That was tough but we made it all work! We would FaceTime or use appear.in to talk because then we could listen to music together. It sounds corny but that’s us!
In September Matt came up to Canada and he was a farmer for a few days! I woke up one morning and I asked my Mom “where did Matt go?” she said, “oh, he’s out spraying with your Dad and I think they will be combining after.” I love that Matt was in my small town during harvest so then he could see what my family does and what farming really is. He loved every moment of it too!
I made sure that he ate all of the Canadian foods such as All Dressed and Ketchup chips, smarties, a ceaser, farmers brewery beer, and of course Tim Hortons!
We flew back to Philadelphia and I could only be there for a week and a half but when we were together, we would always spend it like our last. It was never a dull moment and if it was, we would be ourselves as an old married couple, staying in and watching movies, eating pizza, and both of us would sing along to our Ed Sheeran and Elvis records.
Our time together always flew by and I would be back to the airport. I’m usually not a person to cry but in October I cried before my Uber came to get me. I wouldn’t see Matt for 3 weeks and I couldn’t sleep, I wouldn’t stop talking about him and FaceTiming him but I did have a countdown on my phone of when he would be flying into Canada.
November 11th came around and it was finally the day I would finally be able to see Matt! I had an entire week planned for us but little did I know that he would be proposing to me 2 days later.
how they asked
From day 1 Matt always wanted to ask my Dad for my hand in marriage, so when he came to Canada in November I knew he was going to do just that!
On Sunday, my Dad went downstairs to get a drink, and I said: “Hey Matt you should get one for me too.” Once Matt stood up his face went white as a ghost and I thought oh no, he’s going to faint or something and not get the chance to ask my Dad.
10 minutes went by and my Dad and Matt were back with the drinks and I knew everything was good to go! I thought Matt was going to propose to me in December when I would be in Philadelphia but I was in for a surprise!
November 13th Matt and I drove to Clear Lake, Manitoba, Canada where my family went every summer to go camping and water skiing. Clear Lake is a significant place to me because I have so many fantastic childhood memories and I couldn’t wait to take Matt there!
I have always talked about how amazing Manitoba sunsets are and that we have the best sunrises and sunsets ever. It was my mission that day to show Matt around and to find the perfect place to watch the sunset.
We stopped at a cute little place to grab tea and started to walk towards the boardwalk. It was a gorgeous day with zero wind and a perfect day to show Matt around. Walking around trails for hours, we started walking on a path that is around the water. The sun was beginning to set, and Matt said: “we should stop here and watch the sunset.” I replied with “I know we can get a better view, follow me!” Little did I know that I was making this easy for Matt to have a good proposal spot because I was the one picking it!
I found, what I thought was a fantastic spot, and we sat down on a dock that was partially taken out of the water. Because I was so proud of it being a bright day, I brought my brothers camera to take pictures of the sunset. As I am taking pictures, Matt said: “Won’t it be nice that in 10 years we will be able to share with our kids why Clear Lake is important to us?” Me not realizing he was starting to propose, my response was “10 years? Won’t we be back this summer?” He laughed and said, “yes, Michelle we will be here in the summer.”
A few minutes went by, and as the sun was setting, even more, I looked all around us and said “wow, this has been the best day. The weather is beautiful, it’s so peaceful here, you came to Canada, and it just doesn’t get any better than this.”
All of a sudden Matt stands up, turns towards me, reaches into his pocket, and as he starts to go on one knee I said: “Stop screwing with me, don’t fake propose!” He took his sunglasses off and said just wait. As he is standing up all I remember is I stand up, my hand goes directly also my mouth in awe and Matt starts saying all of these nice things. I am crying with tears of joy and nodding my head yes. He then went down on one knee and said “Michelle Lynne Barker, will you marry me?” Of course, I said YES!
I wouldn’t take my hand off of my mouth, so Matt had to ask me to give him my hand. I was in shock that I didn’t even look at my ring for 5 minutes because my dream of marrying Matt had come true. I was on cloud nine, and after awhile I was thinking, did I even say yes? I did, but I even asked Matt just to make sure.
I couldn’t imagine him asking me in a better place. As I write this, I have tears of joy in my eyes because we love each other so much and our story indeed is one in a million. From Fiverr to Fiancé in 11 months is something unique and he is my happily ever after. Love exists, it is possible to love someone deeply, and long distance never stopped us from being together.
Love Always,
The Future Camerons
