The year 2019 was the year my life’s story took an unexpected turn. It started with a desire for self discovery and ended with a declaration of who I am in the choices I made.

What better way to discover oneself than to set out on your own far removed from everything and everyone you’ve known? On January 24th, I had left home with a one way ticket to South East Asia—alone and with no clear idea of when I might come back. My very first day in this new world—I met an amazing woman; We traveled together from Thailand through Cambodia, Vietnam, Laos, and back into Thailand.

Then one morning on an island, sitting on the doorstep of a beachfront hut, news which changed everything came. Ania—that amazing woman I had met on my first day—was pregnant. The sudden loss of freedom was devastating. A short boat ride and a bus later, we were back in Bangkok where we had first met not too long ago. I had decided to return with her to her home in Poland. We both got a job and prepared for our baby’s arrival.

Though it has been very difficult, I have adapted to the challenges of a foreign culture where English is the unspoken third language and learning to accept being away from my friends and family back home. My new family here welcomed me into theirs from the very first day and have loved me increasingly as their own.

Meanwhile…

the love Ania and I had for each other grew to become the love I had always dreamed of having. Our adventures continued as we went to our first wedding together up in Finland and climbed the stairs of the Eiffel Tower in Paris. The time eventually came for us to meet Amelia—our little one who had been growing in Ania’s beautiful belly. I stayed by My Love’s side through the whole process; Cutting the cord myself—on December 14th—I became a father!

That is my life’s story for the year of 2019.

It had been an adventurous journey from start to finish in the far away places I had gone, the emotional ups and downs endured, and especially the new people I’ve met along the way…including the little one who sleeps in my arms as I write this. Rather than finding a place I belong, I found a woman that I am joined to. On the anniversary of the day we met, I presented this visual summary of the year to her. Once she spotted the ring hidden among the images here, I pulled it from my pocket and asked Ania to marry me! Our shared story continues…now with our beautiful baby girl.