His Thoughts:
The first day I met Kafayat, it was super random. I had just moved down to Houston due to a new job. I was thinking about pursuing an MBA, so I began looking up various organizations and schools. On a whim, I decided to go to a MBA Prep organization info session/happy hour at a local Houston lounge in October 2012. I remember seeing a very tall and meticulously put-together Kafayat. She spoke so eloquently, and had a very big smile that showed itself often. I kept it 100% professional, so I only talked to her for 1-2 minutes as I moved in and out of conversations with the event attendees. She later followed up the event with an email to all of the attendees. I simply replied back, thanking her for her time and letting her know that I liked the lounge location, and that I would add it to my list of places since I was new to Houston. She replied back and started sharing more about Houston and eventually herself!
We exchanged emails over the next few months and agreed to meet up in mid-December to have lunch so that I could learn more about the MBA prep organization. She picked the spot, El-Meson, a “homey Spanish restaurant with a Cuban flair” in Rice Village (Houston). I’ll never forget her walking into the restaurant. She had on some “painted on jeans” and heels… lawdamercy! We had the best conversations- seamlessly transitioning from topics of Houston hip-hop, Malcolm Gladwell, spoken word, race, and a host of other things. After 3 hours of conversation, we both looked at the clock and realized that we had been talking and eating for 3 hours without ever talking about the business school stuff that we initially met to talk about. After the lunch, we finally exchanged phone numbers. Ha. Needless to say, that was the start to quite a few more conversations….and a lot more emails!
Her Thoughts:
I met Chris at a Pre-MBA happy hour I was hosting for prospective students. I spoke with a few folks throughout the night and maybe talked to Chris directly for a total of 2 minutes. No real first impressions of him, I just recall that when he was leaving he threw me this sultry look (which he denies to this day). I could have misinterpreted the look, but he’s given it to me several times since and in a word…it’s firey, LOL. After that event, we started emailing back and forth and he eventually asked me out to lunch to “learn more about the MBA prep program”. I still joke with my friends that “he ain’t slick…MLT has a website if he wants to learn more”. But honestly, Chris is a kind-hearted guy and treats tons of folks to lunch so it was likely totally innocuous. Anywho, we finally meet for lunch at this Cuban spot called El Meson and we NEVER spoke ONCE about the MLT, lol.
After that things very quickly blossomed. He was new to Houston so I invited him out to several events following our lunch and we had SUCH a great time. Performing at open mics, late night “rap battles” and nerf gun fights, and a Kendrick Lamar concert. When it came time for me to head off to Wharton, we made a commitment to make each other feel as if we were physically present, despite the 1,500 mile distance. This meant really honing our communication, making the few moments we did get to be with one another really count, and being very open and vulnerable. While challenging, we were able to do just that and survived 3 years of long distance! I LOVE this man to the moon!
What a beautiful story!! May God bless their union. Here are more pictures from their wedding: