Insta-love! New Account Shares Awesome Stories of First Moments

Ahh, the “way we met” stories. Many couples love to tell the story of their fall into love, whether it was a slow burn, a sudden flash of connection, or being totally uninterested in the other person at first. Luckily, many people eat those stories up, and are suckers for love — so one Instagram account has started collecting these sweet snapshots of adoration!

Brooklyn Sherman is the creator the @TheWayWeMet account, and gets hundreds of submissions daily. For her, showcasing the unique and awesome ways that couples meet in person is a way to remind people that meeting the love of your life in person is still totally possible — even in the age of online dating.

“People email me and tell me that they had given up on love until they started following my account,” Sherman says, “and honestly hearing that, and knowing I’m making a positive difference in people’s lives is all I need to hear for all of this to be worth it.”

These glimpses of love will inspire you to believe in the power of connection out in the real world, at any age. Scroll through some of our favorites below!

The perfect match after you think you could never love again

“Twenty-one years ago while going through a messy divorce, a very dear friend kept insisting she had the perfect match lined up for me when I was ready to “get back on the wagon.” Impatiently, She tricked me into meeting him when she arranged a birthday party for her husband and invited me. I was suspicious at first and asked her, “will he be there?” When her answer was no, I agreed to attend. Then, according to my friend, he changed his mind last minute and was able to come due to changes in his work schedule. When our eyes locked, it was amazing; I knew instantly there was a deep connection. How clever of my friend to have known this! We have since married and have been for 15 years. He is my true soulmate. Sadly, my dear friend who introduced us has been taken by Breast Cancer, but every day I look to heaven and thank her for her persistence in getting us together. It seems that sometimes our family and friends know us better then we know ourselves and can be the best matchmakers.”A photo posted by @thewaywemet on Jul 27, 2015 at 11:16am PDT

Meeting for the first time at a wedding shoot

“This photo was taken the first day we met. George and I weren’t the modeling type but we both had friends who asked us to be a part of a winter-themed wedding photoshoot. My friend Jen, who’s a photographer, asked me to be the bride and George’s friend Sarah, who’s a florist, asked him to be the groom. The idea for the project was to encourage more people to have winter weddings. My first words to George were, “Hi. I’m your bride.” Two years later I walked down the aisle as his real bride. Of course we used the same florist and photographer who created our mock fairytale that turned into reality.”A photo posted by @thewaywemet on Aug 3, 2015 at 11:41am PDT

Love At First Sight And Growing Up Together

“It was Junior year of High School, and I was skipping my last class of the day. As I was getting into my friend’s car, I accidentally scraped the car next to me with my messenger bag. I turned around to assess the damage and saw a handsome guy sitting in the driver’s seat with the most amazing shade of blue eyes. I apologized and as we drove off, I told my friend I was in love. I thought about him for the next two weeks and just as I was mentioning him to another friend while out shopping, he drove right by the mall door we were exiting. I let out a scream and said “That’s him!” We ended up talking in the mall parking lot and exchanging numbers. He tried to play it cool by saying, “I’ll call you later when I have some time.” That ended up being within two hours, and we had our first date at Baskin Robbins. Fast forward 12 years later; we have two wonderful sons and were just married this week. We were so young when we met and did a lot of growing up together. I have so much fun with my husband. He is a wonderful father to our children and I couldn’t ask for a better partner!”A photo posted by @thewaywemet on Jul 19, 2015 at 4:16pm PDT

Staying Together Through A Cancer Diagnosis

“Gabe and I met our freshman year of high school. As soon as I saw him at the ripe age of 14, I knew he was “my person.” So I did what any 14 year old girl would do; I went up to him, pushed him up against the locker, kissed him, said bye and then ran away. I was so scared to talk to him, that I dodged him for the next three months. Eventually, we started talking again and a couple months later, he asked me out. Gabe and I have now been together for almost 6 years. Earlier this year, Gabe and I’s world was turned upside down when he was diagnosed with stage three brain cancer. As a result, we had to move out of our apartment, stay in multiple hospitals, and move to a diffrent city for Gabe’s radiation and chemo. Gabe stays so positive through the tough times and just his smile makes my heart stop. He surprised me once again on April 4th, 2015, when in his hospital gown and all, asked me if I would marry him. Of course I said yes. We will continue to be together through sickness and in health no matter what. I know we can handle anything that is thrown our way.” A photo posted by @thewaywemet on Jul 18, 2015 at 2:31pm PDT

The Best Thing That Ever Happened To Me

“My wife passed away March 24th 2015, 3 months short of our 53rd anniversary. We met on a blind date arranged by my good friend when we were in college in 1958. My wife had seen me while I was working in the college bookstore and told my friend’s girlfriend that she would like to date me. I arranged the double date with my friend and his girlfriend to go to a college basketball game. When my friend and I went to the dorm to pick up our dates all went well until this portly and not very attractive girl came down to the waiting room. My friend said to me “there’s your date.” I said ” thanks,” and went to greet her. He grabbed me by the shirt back and said “wrong girl.” At that time, my real date came in to the waiting room and that was my wife. We dated throughout college, and were married a week after graduation. We had 3 children and 5 grandchildren. We spent 26 years in the USAF, traveling all over the world while I flew the F-4 Phantom aircraft. I miss her terribly today. My relationship with my wife can best be described by Gladys Knight’s song called The Best Thing That Ever Happened To Me.” A photo posted by @thewaywemet on Jul 16, 2015 at 8:34am PDT

Striking Up A Conversation With A Neighbor

“I decided it was time to give up on the wait for a husband and bought my first house on my own. Sitting on my front porch was one of my favorite things to do, especially because I could watch the cute guy across the street working on his Jeep. On St. Patricks Day, with the help of a little liquid courage, I walked across the street and introduced myself to that guy. Six years later, we’re married and living in the house I bought. Best purchase of my life.” A photo posted by @thewaywemet on Jul 15, 2015 at 10:12am PDT

2nd Grade Teacher Marries the 6th Grade Teacher

“In 1999, I thought I married the love of my life. Turns out he started cheating on me about a month after our wedding. After three years of trying to make it work, I decided I needed a big change. I took a leave of absence from my teaching job and moved across the country, from New Jersey to California. It was three weeks before my 30th birthday and there I was; divorced, with no job, no friends, and navigating a new state. I was staying with my cousin and her husband. I finally got an interview for a teaching position at a small Catholic school. When I was offered the job, the principal warned me that for the last 10 years, every person that taught in this classroom had either gotten married or pregnant. In fact, the reason why they were hiring me was because the previous second grade teacher married the third grade teacher. I laughed. Shortly after that conversation, I was introduced to the attractive 6th grade teacher and within 10 months we were engaged. Five months after that, we were married. We’ve now been married for 13 years and have three beautiful children.”A photo posted by @thewaywemet on Aug 2, 2015 at 12:17pm PDT

How did you meet your significant other? Let us know in the comments! <3