It takes a lot of willpower and confidence to put yourself out there knowing full well there’s a chance you’ll get rejected, or even worse, left underwhelmed.

Women are taught to be passive and complacent especially when it comes to dating, but honestly, it’s 2017 and we don’t care to play hard to get anymore. But many women still harbor a lot of anxiety when it comes to making the first move, which is unfair on both genders, but understandable.

I wanted us to become part of each other’s families. He is a stubborn, equally passionate, and resolute person. We bickered and fought (still do) but he never took cheap shots. I did not want to have to date long-distance so our first serious conversations about marriage went along with my application cycle. And speaking of sacraments, he was willing to baptize in the Catholic Church any children we were blessed with.

We also did not want to live together prior to marriage so it was clear that if we were to move away to dental school together, it would be as husband and wife. At the end of the day, there are many factors that go into dating and choosing who to date—personalities, beliefs, values, life styles, etc.

I was not willing to date casually and constantly wonder whether he was faithful to me and our relationship. We remained committed to one another and that meant always and every time coming to the table and resolving our conflicts. He never expressed interest in converting while we were dating and his mom was a bit wary, but he always respected that I was and always will be Catholic.

It was important to me that dating was considered a pre-cursor to marriage and not just a way to “rack ‘em up”. I went through a crisis of faith in college, but he would encourage me to pray about it.

" It eventually began making the rounds on dating apps for real, so I wouldn’t recommend using it (although even a stolen one joke is better than sliding into someone’s DMs with a vanilla "hi") but you can take a page out of his book.

Every sin that a man doeth is without the body; but he that committeth fornication sinneth against his own body.1 Thessalonians 4:3-5 - For this is the will of God, [even] your sanctification, that ye should abstain from fornication: Deuteronomy 7:3 - Neither shalt thou make marriages with them; thy daughter thou shalt not give unto his son, nor his daughter shalt thou take unto thy son.1 Corinthians 11:1-34 - Be ye followers of me, even as I also [am] of Christ.

All of these boys were Catholic—either practicing or, at least, culturally Catholic. I figured, I’d meet some Catholic boy eventually, have the Catholic wedding, and have the Catholic babies and that’d be it. At eighteen, I moved away for college and planned on focusing on school, having some fun, and getting into dental school. We spent about three months going on dates, spending time together, meeting each other’s friends, and getting to know one another. He did not shy away from that label and he proudly called me his girlfriend. He looks up to his father and has a loving and devoted relationship to his mother. He did not talk disrespectfully to his mother and he sought advice from his father. Even when we were upset or mad or hurt, we took the time to hear one another out. Early on, he would come to Mass with me and I would go to church with him. If I were not able to talk about my faith or if I never was able to share it with him, I do not think we would have stayed in a relationship.

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