Five years ago, the man who would eventually become my husband asked me to be his girlfriend. He was a senior in high school, and I was a freshman in college. (I should note that I was still in the awkward stage between high school in college when we met. Our best friends set us up through text message. A true story of modern-day high schoolish sweethearts.)

So, October 16 is one of my favorite days of the year.

Dear Husband,

I want this tribute to fit our relationship in the way we see it. I know I've written the account of the day we started dating on multiple occasions, but I think it's time to write another.

You're probably wondering, "Why are you so obsessed with me?"

Um, I have plenty of reasons. I'll probably hash them out on here for the anniversary we're supposed to celebrate for the rest of our lives (wedding). I feel like you're trying to distract me or something. Hmph.

Below you'll find a summary of those times, how they were perceived, and the overall level of mushy gushy sap.

1. My freshman year of college.

My college writing professor asked the class to write about a happy day. This account was full of cheese, sap, and cotton candy. I even changed the words you used.

Instead of, "Wanna go out?"

I put in writing, "Will you be my girlfriend?"

The rest of the tribute was accurate, down to the moment you almost slipped off the rocks and into the river. (P.S., thanks for not falling.)

I received a well-deserved A, although my roommate disagreed.

Sap level: 7/10

2. My junior year of college.

We were assigned the easiest task in the world for a person like me. Create website. Publish content. Boom.

I took this class in the fall. Fall always makes me nostalgic, so for this piece I focused on the historic covered bridge we sat under as your friend Lee made your next move completely obvious.

"Did you ask her yet?"

"No, Lee!"

I was 99.9% sure you would ask me to be your girlfriend that day. I was 99.99% sure you would ask me to be your girlfriend when you tried to convince me to sit on the rocky ledge with you. Lee made your plans 100% clear.

This assignment was less about the writing than my overall ability to use WordPress, but I earned another A.

Sap level: 5/10, but only tree sap. Most of the piece was about the park and its historical significance, not our relationship.

3. My senior year of college.

It was the typical writing assignment. Personal narrative. Special day. Must be meaningful.

Frankly, it's the opposite of what I do best. I'm full of sass, caffeine, and pop culture. So I took this assignment too far. I typed most of the words with disgust on my face. Not for the event, but for the way I recounted it.

I mean, the first line was "The cool autumn breeze gently rustled my hair as I stepped out of the van."

Sigh. This piece was pretentious and poorly written. I think I earned an A- or a B. I don't like to talk about it. (Even though I just did.)

Sap level: 11/10.

Our story isn't sappy. It's full of color. It's full of Nutella. It's full of hugs. All of those things are important.

You invited me to hike with your youth group. I said yes. You asked me to sit on a rocky ledge. I said no. You said, "Wanna go out?" I said yes. Or yeah. I don't remember.

Thanks for starting this journey with me five years ago. I hope you had a good thyme (ha!) at Fresh Thyme while I wrote this.

With love,

Hillarie Finley

P.S., I'll be slightly offended if you don't laugh at my pun.