This weekend the darkness brought me to Jacksonville, Florida for the wedding of a man whom I love, admire, and respect; to the love of his life. James and Lisa are now cleaved. Their initial meeting was on the campus of Florida A&M University but their love didn’t mature until later in life. “Dey is married na!”
The Florida-Georgia couple had a wonderful celebration at River Club located on the top floor of the Wells Fargo building downtown. I was honored to be a groomsman to my friend and brother. I am usually on the other side of the camera for two reasons, I’m a photographer and I hate being in weddings. But how could I turn down this honor? I have endured some of my most difficult times with this man throughout the course of our friendship, and I was definitely about to have his back this time as well. It was a must that I be there.
As tradition dictates, the ceremony was held in the hometown of the bride, which was fine by me. Prior to this weekend, I my travels to the city had only been transient. Being a hub city, Jacksonville has reasonable airline ticket pricing. It’s also along the I-95 corridor. It was nice to actually be in the city. Jacksonville is was you would expect from a coastal city in the south during the summer, hot and humid. But I was pleased to find that the streets were litter free. The rampant road construction seem to indicate that the city was still going through a period of growth. The view of the river was nice from both sides. The Crown Plaza served as the host hotel. James and Lisa did a wonderful job selecting The River Club for their wedding and reception location.
I‘m always excited when I get to attend a wedding of anyone of my fraternity brothers, but I’m super ecstatic when it’s one of my LB’s. They serve as a mini-reunion for us. We all attended FAMU during some its most pivotal moments in history. The from being terrorized by pipe-bombs on campus to the 2000 elections and 9/11. We all have a common separate history that accentuates the one we’ve created together. And what a history it has been. I could go on for days with stories, but I’ll save that for another post. What was important was that I got to see some great friends.
As I learn more about physics I’m amazed at how spectacular the arrangement of matter and energy is in this universe. Our atoms are eons old and have been arranged and disassembled countless times all while being propelled through the cosmos. We were lucky enough to be arranged at this particular time in space to celebrate the love energy James and Lisa shared. This night of nostalgia and new beginnings was filled with cake, love and laughter. Although our time together was brief, it was wonderful. We even got some time to try out Jacksonville’s Nightlife.
