Connect How did your love story begin?

I met Gopal at 11, babysitting at a yoga retreat in Australia. He was 8, visiting from Hawaii—he teased me, threw a rotten avocado at me and I swore I’d never see him again. Ten years later, as a single mom, I ran into him at a yoga center in California. I walked up, pinched his belly, and said, “You owe me an apology, boy.” He nearly fainted. A week later, he proposed. A year later, we married. Twenty-three years, four kids, and a beautiful life in Hawaii later—we still choose love every day.

What is your favorite memory you've shared as a couple?

When Gopal proposed the second time, I hesitated & asked him to wait for my answer. That night, I prayed—& an angel came to me in a dream, saying, “Gopal is your husband.” I woke to a room filled with light, it was 2am when I called my mom in Australia overjoyed. It was clear God had shown me my path. Though our families didn’t support us or think we’d last—we were young and impulsive—we were sure. We had a small ceremony at the marriage registry office and have been growing in love ever since.

What would you do with $20,000?

We’d finally take the honeymoon we never had. We became parents early in our relationship and poured our hearts into raising our children. Now, 23 years later, we’d love to go on a retreat to Bali—a dream destination—to renew our wedding vows and celebrate our love, reconnect, and savor the sweet stillness we never had time for. It would be a long-awaited blessing and a beautiful chapter in our ongoing love story.