About the Bride, by Stefano
As this website is about my upcoming wedding, I figure a good place to start is by sharing what this wedding means to me. Now I know that I am not perfect but I must have done something right to receive the blessing I have that is Sapana. I know that may sound cheesy but apart from my attraction to cheese there is a precious clue at the tip of my tongue. Words like life are very much like boxes and it’s not the box that is important but what you fill them with.
Sapana is a one of a kind gem. Not only is she unique in nature but her name is also unique and her parents must have known it choosing to spell it Sapana instead of the traditional spelling of Sapna. Her name, very fittingly, means Dream and like a dream she is a blessing in my world. Through her I find inspiration to live my life as if it were a dream with child like enthusiasm. She is a special combination of wisdom, patience, and kindness in the body of an exotic goddess and with the light heartedness and humor of a child. She teaches me to smile and laugh everyday and if you are in her presence then you will also be graced with laughter. In fact, if you ever hear a witty joke escape my lips, there is a good chance it came from her a mysterious fact that seldom know although through no fault of mine for I believe in sharing and spreading joy at all costs.
The first time I saw her, she was wearing a pink top, standing on pink stilettos, and talking on her pink mobile phone. Something about her just stood out standing outside an Atlanta coffee shop by the name of Chocolatte. I was instantly mesmerized and worked up the courage to approach her over a month of non-verbal courtship consisting of meeting gazes and smiles. I probably drank more hot beverages that month than ever before.
She is a mighty attorney at hand and a buon gustaio at heart for food, fashion, and fashion. Did I mention shoes? She likes those too! Her amazing personality, charm, and sweet nature disguise her brilliant intelligence and dedicated work ethic. She recently surprised me the other day calling me on the phone and having an entire conversation in Italian, after learning to speak the language on her commute to and from work.
She comes from a great family and once you meet them it’s no wonder why Sapana is the way she is blending the youthful carefree but wise spirit of her mother, Rekha, and the hard work ethic / patience of her father, Kishore. Her brother Samir is a talented dentist on the rise and a master chef that enjoys fixing culinary delights as if you were watching the Food Network. Her mother truly knows how to live life with passion and zest and her father is a wise and humble soft spoken sage, who puts his family above all else. He is also successful dentist with multiple practices in the Los Angeles area and an avid investor. Her family is very loving and nurturing, a big reason as to why Sapana is so special and unique.
What I really love about Sapana is her open mind and sense of adventure. When we first met, my best friend George expressed to me some reservations about our future together because of the fact that she did not own and had never owned any sneakers in her life (although she claimed to own cleats and hiking boots). I was amazed when I took her to the park to play soccer and she just kicked off her stilettos and we jumped into a full-fledged pick up game barefoot (only the two of us were barefoot everyone else had cleats or shoes on). On a separate occasion, playing beach soccer she made a special forces guy, I wont mention Phil’s name, cry after a shin kick. How about that George!?!
I love her more than anything and cannot wait to see her on our wedding day.
About the Groom, by Sapana
What can I say about Stefano other than—I never know what I am going to get from him. Anyone who has spent 10 minutes with him will know what I’m talking about.
The first time I met Stefano, I immediately detected his brilliance and Italian charm. So when he said to me that day, “A few years ago I drew a painting of the woman of my dreams and it looked just like you,” naturally I thought it was a pick up line— until I saw the painting and I realized he was not lying. Everything since then has been just as magical as the start.
Stefano is a true renaissance man in the most classical sense. I visited his downtown Atlanta loft and I learned that he builds his own (stunning!) furniture, including 10-foot waterfalls. Other than owning a marketing company, he is a yoga instructor, Brazilian jiu jitsu fighter, fluent in several languages, master in the culinary arts, expert lacrosse player, and the list goes on. Within months of spending time with him, I was experimenting with holistic body wraps made out of garlic, raw food diets, sprouting foods all the while being mesmerized by stories of his life encounters including the time when a thief stole and returned his car and then applied for a job at his company, and his visits to sweat lodges.
But the most beautiful thing about Stefano is his heart, generosity and virtue. His spirit is something unworldly and hypnotizing and cannot be compared to anyone that I have ever met before.
I have now known him for six years and our mutual respect and love for one another has not changed, and he is as sweet as ever…he cooks dinner for me every night, always packs lunches for me to take to work, when I’m sick, he makes me homemade chicken soup and homemade biscotti. When I feel like traveling, he makes sure to take me anywhere in the world I want to go.
It is just part of who he is, which comes from his family. His mother is a dentist, who has a passion for Italian music and is a perfectionist in anything she does. His father is a hematologist/oncologist who really should open a store and sell the incredible Quattro Fratelli wine he makes and the incredible biscotti he bakes. His brothers, Marco, Mauricio, and Sergio have become like my own brothers and while they are as different as night and day in some respects, they all share the Grossi qualities of love of life, people, talent, food, and intelligence.
I am so happy to be sharing the rest of my life with my best friend and with whom I cannot imagine my life without. I have not shared so many laughs, adventures, and enlightening experiences with anyone. One thing is for sure– life will never be boring with him.
P.S. Why I think he’s ABSOLUTELY perfect for me is that he LOVES to cook and clean! I mean that as a joke, but it is VERY true!
