PHOENIX — An overcast day at a Maricopa County courthouse may not be the most romantic setting for a Valentine’s Day date, but when Aaron showed up in the parking lot with flowers, Amie’s smile stretched ear-to-ear like they were a young love back in grade school.
Cupid first struck Amie and Aaron when they were West Valley high schoolers.
The age gap between a junior and a freshman had too many social consequences, they say. So the crush on one another never flamed beyond a tinder.
“She was smoking hot,” said Aaron, recalling his crush on Amie.
“He was dreamy,” said Amie, looking into his eyes.
They both married other people, had children, and eventually divorced their other partners.
Aaron describes the process of going through a divorce, as “going to war.”
“It’s giving up, it’s giving up on love, it’s giving up on what you want, what you don’t want,” said Amie, talking about how separation is sometimes best for a better quality of life.
Since 2011, the marriage rate has declined by 8% in the U.S. The divorce rate, meanwhile, has dropped by 17% over the same period.
In Arizona, the divorce rate dropped 20%, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Now, 30 years later, Amie and Aaron have entertained that "what could have been" school crush through a mutual high school friend.
Sparks on the first date led to a wedding about a year later.
The two admit, combining children, dogs, and the baggage of past relationships all under the same roof led them back to the brink of divorce.
They both said third-party counseling helped and their willingness to forgive aided turbulent challenges.
“I don’t want to give up on you,” said Amie.
Just before lunchtime on Valentine’s Day, Aaron and Amie found love in what can seem like a hopeless place.
The two decided to dismiss their divorce.
In the parking lot where some have just finished legally finagling their separation, the court filing to cancel their divorce reads like a love note for these two.
“I just think, love can conquer all,” said Amie. “We’re going to spend the rest of our lives together.”
