✪ Sometimes the moments that seem most insurmountable are the ones that bring us the greatest blessing and hope. Dang Nguyen recounts how his and his girlfriend's lives were forever changed by an unexpected pregnancy.
#goalcast #livetheimpossible #goalcastinspiration
#goalcast #livetheimpossible #goalcastinspiration
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FunTranscript
00:00 Emily was eight months pregnant and not a single person knew we were entangled in the web of lies
00:06 We had woven and in an instance our lives came crashing down
00:10 It was June of 1999. It was the first time I ever laid my eyes on her
00:15 She was the most beautiful girl I'd ever seen I remember thinking to myself damn
00:19 The guy who gets that girl is the luckiest guy in the world for six long months, though
00:25 I could only admire her from afar
00:28 Finally the semester's wrapping up and I realized my time was now or never
00:31 So I slipped her a note asking for her phone number as I watched her scribble something back
00:36 My heart was literally just beating right out of my chest
00:39 I could only think of the worst-case scenario instead written there in beautiful handwriting was her phone number
00:45 We exchanged many calls that lasted all night through to the early morning and with a little bit of magic
00:50 We began dating and that was just the beginning of our journey together
00:55 One year later and we was eight months pregnant and not a single person knew it was her best-kept secret
01:02 But also the worst kind to have and we was small and were big sweaters to cover up the bump. We were young
01:09 naive and clueless teenagers
01:12 We had some of the toughest conversations of our lives during this period it didn't get any easier from there, though
01:18 We made the very difficult decision to put our unborn son up for adoption
01:24 We had several meetings with the local adoption agency meetings where we sifted through
01:29 profiles of potential parents a couple of strangers would be reaping the rewards of our unplanned pregnancy
01:36 they would be happy parents and we would not be parents a
01:40 19 a part of me felt light relieved from the pressures and responsibilities
01:46 But the other part of me felt very heavy
01:49 It was weighed down by this deep sense of guilt
01:52 Shame and regret the day came for us to finally sign the adoption papers
01:57 But before doing so we met Emily's doctor for her routine appointment and what the doctor said next
02:03 Would forever change the course of our future Emily
02:07 Your baby is too small. You need to stay at the hospital until you give birth
02:12 There is now no choice, but to reveal our year-long secrets
02:17 It was time to tell her parents and they were not happy to say the least
02:21 Her mom is very traditional East Asian and wanted a dowry in exchange for her daughter
02:27 She asked for two goats
02:30 Where was I supposed to find two goats
02:34 Ultimately with the love and support of our families we decided to keep her son. We would be happy parents after all
02:44 Sometimes which seems insurmountable in the moment may end up being one of life's greatest blessings
02:51 I'm a testament to that
02:53 17 years ago
02:55 I was scared and I doubted myself every single day because I wasn't sure if I had what it took to be a good father
03:02 and now
03:05 I'm so proud to be standing on the stage to be able to share my story
03:09 With my son who is in attendance tonight
03:15 He
03:17 Has no idea how many times he's pulled me out of the
03:22 Darkest moments of my life with his love and his laughter
03:25 I see a part of me and him and I'm incredibly proud of the man. He's becoming
03:30 Better not be bringing home any baby just yet, though
03:34 As for my high school sweetheart
03:38 There's simply no words for me to describe how much love I have for her
03:44 we've been together for almost
03:46 18 years now and have two more beautiful sons
03:49 And even though she's the last person in the world who watch a horror movie with me
03:55 She'll always be the first to laugh at my dad jokes
03:58 definitely worth more than two books
04:01 I've often heard that in order to make a relationship work
04:06 It needs to be 50/50, but I've learned that is absolutely not true
04:10 Because love is hard love is stupid love is messy love is blind love is painful
04:14 But in spite of all this love is still so worth it
04:19 Love is when you give a hundred percent and expect zero in return because if Emily and I hadn't given each other
04:25 Everything we had all these years those two young teenage parents would have never made it here
04:30 Almost two decades ago. Remember when I said the guy who gets that girl's the luckiest man in the world
04:35 Who would have ever thought that it would be me?
04:38 you
04:40 you
04:42 you
04:44 you
04:46 you
04:48 you
04:50 you
04:52 (upbeat music)
04:54 [MUSIC PLAYING]