Prom. For some, its an enchanted evening full of dancing, love, laughter and moments that will last a lifetime. For others it’s a night they would rather not remember. Where I went to school, we didn’t have a prom, we had a Jr./Sr. Banquet. I planned it my first year and didn’t even attend. One reason is that I had no one to go with. The other was, well, quite frankly, it did not sound all that fun to me. I had no desire to rent a tux just to sit at a hotel and eat banquet food stag. Because of the school I went to, we were not allowed to dance or listen to secular music during school functions. Now, my senior year of high school, I did have a date and we went to my banquet and her prom. I can remember the lights, the thumpin music the DJ was pumping through the speakers, there not being any room on the dance floor to actually dance, me not knowing how to really dance and how nervous I was because I was completely out of my element.
Now, lets fast forward a bit. Its 2018 and proms are a lil different now. Brooke and Christian are and example of everything I was not in high school. We met up at Market Square this past Saturday. Now, if you are in Knoxville or know anything about Knoxville, then you know how insane doing any type of shoot is in Market Square on the same day as the Orange and White game AND the Dogwood Arts Festival Chalk Walk! It took forever to find a place to park and there were people everywhere! But where there is a will, there is a way! These two love birds have been together for over 4 years! Their love is just as strong today as it was years ago. We walked all over downtown. Everyone who looked at them couldn’t say enough about how beautiful and handsome they were and how they were the best looking folks in Knoxville…and they were right!
But there is much more than her dress that showed Brooke’s beauty. It was much more than Christian’s tux that displayed his suave demeanor. They radiated with love and passion for one another. It was in the way that Brooke smiled when Christian held her hand. It was in the way Christian looked at Brooke when her back was turned. What these two have for one another, many people search their entire lives for and do not find. Their love is more than an emotion conjured by a silly school dance and fancy clothes. This love runs deep. It has roots. It is strong and is only getting stronger. So, what makes this kind of love? How do you get it? Is it something that you can make or does it just happen over time?
In most wedding ceremonies, 1 Corinthians 13 is usually quoted. Starting in verse 4 it says:
“4 Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. 5 It does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. 6 Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. 7 It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres.8 Love never fails.”
True love is hard! Real love is almost impossible to do all the time! How can we do this?! I know personally, I don’t always trust, I can get angry at times, I can be selfish, I used to think I was the most patient person in the world…but then I had kids and all that went out the window. So how on earth are supposed to love…like really love! Personally, I don’t think we can truly love on our own. 1 John 4:19 says “We love because He first loved us.” I honesty believe that we able love others because Christ first loved us and demonstrated that love by dying for us. Now, I am not here to preach, but He did kinda set the perfect example of what true love looks like. True love goes way beyond an emotion or physical attraction. Its a heart thing.
As a photographer, I see examples of love all the time. Im here to tell you, Brooke and Christian have the real thing and I wish them all the best in the world!
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