Micca Watkins
- Micca Watkins met her husband in a Facebook group for singles who love to travel.
- They dated long-distance for months and got married less than a year after meeting.
- They now live in Canada and just celebrated their fourth wedding anniversary.
Before my divorce, I had it all: three kids, a white picket fence, a great career, and a business. I invested 11 years in a relationship and seven years in a marriage with my ex, someone I thought would be mine forever. When we realized that life was taking us in different directions, we decided to call it quits in April 2015. I was 32.
Immediately after the divorce, I jumped into online dating. I had no idea what I was doing because I was never taught how to properly date. I took a break from dating in 2016 because I was not happy with the experience.
But a year later, in December 2017, I met my new husband in the unlikeliest of places: a Facebook group. We just celebrated our fourth wedding anniversary.
It all started with a flirty back-and-forth on a Facebook post
After meeting several men on dating apps and going on several dates, I realized I had some healing to do after my divorce. I needed to learn what I wanted in a relationship — but most importantly I needed to learn about myself and what I wanted in my life. I chose not to date for almost a year, hired a therapist, and focused on my personal growth.
I decided to get back on the dating scene at 35 because I felt like I did a lot of self-work and I was ready. My friends recommended I join a Facebook group for singles who love to travel. There was no guarantee I would meet someone to date, but there was a very high chance I'd meet someone to travel with.
One morning I woke up, checked the group, and saw a post that read, "Sex is cool, but have you ever received emotional support from a like-minded individual who wants to be a part of your personal growth and development?"
A man named Rio had commented. "The support and passion of a woman who wants to see me succeed are addictive and extremely attractive," he wrote. "I reciprocate with my support for her goals, I open my wallet, and 50 shades of grey on that ass!"
To that, I responded, "Where have you been all my life?"
After the playful banter, Rio jumped into my inbox.
The first day we met in person sealed the deal
It turned out Rio lived in Dallas while I was based in Toronto. We dated long-distance for about five months, but after just three weeks we decided we were going to get married.
This was all before meeting in person. We both had a clear vision of what we wanted and how we wanted our lives to be, and we realized quickly that we were in total alignment.
We were finally able to sync our busy schedules and planned a trip to meet in Pittsburgh for the weekend for my son's basketball tournament.
On the drive to meet Rio, my anxieties took over. What if he doesn't show up? What if I'm being catfished? What if he's not who he says he is?
But to my pleasant surprise, he walked through those airport doors with a huge smile on his face. When we saw each other, all the anxiety went away.
He showed up. He was real. An airport kiss that seemed like it was over five minutes long sealed the deal.
8 months later we tied the knot
We started living together; he moved to Canada five months after we met in person. Three months later we got married. It was a beautiful experience. We eloped in New York City and had a winter wedding in a church where my aunt ordained. We had a second ceremony in Toronto a month later for close friends and family — so each year we celebrate two anniversaries.
Since then Rio has become a bonus dad to my boys; we don't share any biological children, and he doesn't have any children of his own. Today we are the perfect family I always dreamed of.
We often say that we manifested each other because we knew exactly what we wanted: to work as entrepreneurs and to live a life of purpose.
We are in awe of our life sometimes, and it all happened because we connected over our shared visions of life via a Facebook group.