A Love We Never Saw Coming

Our story began 10 years ago on October 31, 2015. We were just two strangers, casually hanging out with our mutual friend, Maaso, to celebrate Halloween—little

did we know, this night would mark the start of something neither of us could have ever imagined.

Rashaida was just expecting to have a fun night out with Maaso and whoever this other friend was.

Mecia was caught off guard as soon as Rashaida walked through the door.

Maaso just thought she was combining friend groups.

Our night started with “getting to know you” chats in the backseat of an Uber, quickly escalated to fishbowls at Carolina Ale House in downtown Raleigh, and ended with a late-night adventure at Solas—thanks to daylight savings giving us a bonus hour and our first official Snapchat dancing to Future’s “Real Sisters.”

Although we did not know it then, this night marked the beginning of our forever.

A few months passed, bringing much growth and self-discovery for Rashaida. Finally listening to her intuition, she made the bold move and asked Mecia on a date.

Eventually, we couldn’t resist the pull to be together. Despite our busy lives as teachers and the hour-long drive that separated us, we cherished and made the

most of every moment—savoring the quiet comfort of simply being in each other’s presence whenever we could.

But then, life happened. Rashaida headed to Cambridge for grad school, while Mecia returned to Greensboro. With Rashaida set on carving out the next phase of

her career in Washington, D.C., and Mecia focused on her career in North Carolina, the miles between us grew—and with no clear path back to each other, our first chapter came to an end.

That was the plan—until years later when fate (or LinkedIn’s matchmaking skills—LOL) brought us back together. After watching A Journal for Jordan and noticing a striking resemblance between the lead actress and Rashaida, Mecia decided to shoot her shot (again) and sent a connection request. What started as a simple catch-up between old lovers quickly took a surprising turn—one conversation stretched into days, then weeks. Before we knew it, it was obvious—our love story was far from over!

After rekindling our love and finally closing the long-distance gap that always kept us from living in the same city, we knew we didn’t want to waste any more time—we were ready to make it official. The number 7 symbolizes completion, and as we approached seven years of knowing each other, it felt like the perfect

moment.

So, on Monday, October 31, 2022, we eloped in a beautiful and intimate ceremony.

It was important for us to cherish the first few years of our marriage together, just the two of us.

However, we knew we couldn’t let another year go by without gathering our loved ones to celebrate our special day. And now, the time has finally come!

We are excited to invite you to our Celebration of Love on October 31, 2025, as we celebrate 10 years of knowing each other and 3 years of marriage.

Thank you for celebrating with us!

#ForeverMoore

Cheers,

Mecia & Rashaida

M&R

Celebration of Love

Reception