The Day My Life Changed Forever

By Lee Collins •  Updated: 08/28/16 •  5 min read
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The day my life changed forever was March 3, 2012.

I had started going to a Law of Attraction Meetup in Oklahoma City 5 months earlier in October 2011. Mainly to be around like-minded people to share and discuss ideas and thoughts about life.

It was a great group. Our organizer’s name was Andrea Foster.

The group was mostly 50+ year old ladies but we had formed a certain kinship in the group and it was often the highlight of my week. I was on a bit of a hiatus from marketing events and truly needed to be around some people with the same kind of energy as me.

You see, several events had rocked my world since my divorce in 2010, not the least of which was the giant single-cell tumor that I almost lost my left foot to in January 2012. But we caught in “just in time” to save my foot, with only a 40% loss of bone mass in my lower left tibia.

Maybe I will tell that story later, but for now know that it was the reason I almost didn’t go to the Law of Attraction Meetup that day.

lee-natalie-colorado

I was in pain.

And really just wanted to relax at home.

Well that and I really just wanted to dive deep into re-building my business.

I had sworn off women and all manner of other distractions that Thursday and this was the first day I would really be able to work without distraction and focus on my business.

“For the next 6 weeks I am focusing on ME and my business! No more dating, no more bullshit, just ME!” is what I had declared just two days prior.

But something pushed me to shave.

  • And get dressed.
  • Then splash on some smell good.
  • And go to the Meetup.

I noticed a strange sensation as I walked out to my FJ that day. A kind of excited vibration. It was weird. Odd. But I was open to see what it was, so I stowed my crutches in the back seat, buckled up and headed toward downtown. Somehow I knew my life would change that day.

The closer I got to Meetup, the more I was buzzing with excitement.

WTF?

When I parked at the hotel where the Meetup was held I was practically vibrating out of my skin. I sat in the seat waiting to see if I was going to be OK. Was it a weird interaction with the pain meds? No, this never happened before. Should I have had that leftover burrito for breakfast? I’m sure it was OK… well, I hope it was.

After a few minutes I decided I was going to live and grabbed my crutches and hobbled toward to the door.

The doors slid open and I made my way to the right around the corner to our reserved area.

And that’s when I saw those big blue eyes and my life changed right there.

“Ah shit”.

These were the words that echoed through my mind as the future details of my entire life flashed before my eyes in a heartbeat. And I knew in that instant that I had met my soulmate. And I didn’t even know her name.

(Note: Ah shit in a good way but in a way that said “so much for that declaration to not date anyone for a while”…)

I made my way to an open seat, just one person away from her.

As we went around the room introducing ourselves the only words I could say were, “Hi, I’m Lee and I don’t know why but I am buzzing with so much excitement I can barely contain myself!”

Everyone laughed. Andrea smiled a knowing smile as the lady to my left introduced herself.

And then it was her turn.

Hi, I’m Natalie.

And as she spoke it was like the entire room disappeared except for me and her. And that’s the way it was for us for the entire 90 minutes we shared that first Meetup together.

Like we were the only two people there.

After the Meetup all we wanted to do was talk to each other, but the lady to my right wanted to talk about some of my observations and I didn’t want to be rude but COME ON I have got to talk with Natalie like right NOW.

Finally we got our turn.

We exchanged numbers and met for our first date the next day, where we talked for hours at The Cheesecake Factory and I discovered that she too had been coming to Meetup for about 5 months.

But we had only met for the first time, that day.

After our meal we walked at the park, eventually holding hands and it felt like forever even though it had only been a few hours.

I never believed in love at first sight before that day.

That was the day my life changed forever.

And we’ve been together forever since.

Lee Collins

Air Force veteran and former corporate VP, Lee Collins started marketing online in 1999. He is best known as an early pioneer of Direct Response Marketing on the Internet, but also gained recognition as the creator of Hybrid Marketing and Repeat Profit Systems. When Lee isn't helping his clients solve million-dollar marketing and systems problems, he enjoys time with his wife contemplating by a campfire, exploring a mountain or desert trail in his Jeep Gladiator, or planning their next epic BBQ roadtrip.