It has been fun this year to use my lunch portrait project to reconnect with longtime friends and catch up on old times, but I’ve also enjoyed the opportunity to get to know newer friends better along the way. For several years, Jason’s name would pop up in conversation between mutual friends (he’s part of my sister’s graduating class), and I think we crossed paths once or twice in the process of attending group dinners. It wasn’t until about a year ago that Jason and I interacted directly, at a weekend excursion to Red Iguana II with our mutual friend Tyler. What I found was that Jason is an easy guy to make friends with, which kind of makes sense, considering he’s made his career in Human Resources. He’s a glue guy. He’s also a bit of a movie guy, so last summer we met up early at Cafe Rio before attending my press screening of “Angel Has Fallen” to shoot the bull and talk career stuff—after growing up in Utah, his path has taken him to the DC area and back in the last several years. And of course, Jason was agreeable enough to let me immortalize the moment. Because that’s what glue guys do.
I’ve been fortunate enough to have lots of good roommates over the years, but one of my favorite stretches kicked off in the spring of 2007 when my friend Mark and I decided to rent a little house in Bountiful with my future brother-in-law John. I had met Mark several years earlier, when we worked together at the Utah Statesman up in Logan. Back then, my future roommate worked as a features editor, handling my weekly columns and movie reviews during my second year of grad school at USU. He always had a thoughtful interest in movies, which paired well with his sharp sense of humor. We lost contact after graduation, but reconnected a few years later at a singles ward in Salt Lake. The year and a half we spent as roommates solidified our friendship through a series of memorable group dates and parties, all while Mark made his way through law school at the University of Utah. Eventually Mark graduated and moved to Provo, John married my sister, and I moved out of the house myself in mid-2009. Mark met his wife Holly down in Utah County, and started practicing law while building a family. In the years since, we’ve managed to keep up a steady tradition of holiday get-togethers and occasional Jazz games, and more recently, things have come full-circle as Mark has joined me at several of my press screenings in Salt Lake (most recently for Knives Out, which we both recommend). A couple of months back, we hit up Rusted Sun Pizzeria with our mutual friend Chidsey to eat calzones and catch up, and I finally got to add my old friend/editor/roommate to the Power Lunch Portrait Club.
Last May I was asked to speak in church on Mother’s Day, and as is usually the case, I probably got more out of the experience of preparing than my audience received from the address itself. My subject was the connection between motherhood and Christlike love, and it gave me a new perspective on a woman I’ve known my entire life. When I was younger, I would usually contextualize my mom in pop culture terms. I’d think of memories of going to see Return of the Jedi together when I was a child, or listening to Motown on the car stereo when our family would take long drives. It was the discovery of her teenage collection of original Beatles albums that sparked my interest in being in a band, and I wasn’t surprised at all to learn that my parents had been watching Saturday Night Live on an October evening when my mom went into labor with me. But as an adult, more important intangibles have become clear, such as her limitless generosity and instinct for unconditional love. I’ve also gained a better appreciation for what she did before I was born, joining the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints as a convert in her twenties, and moving from her home in Ohio to start a life with my dad in Utah. In the time since my dad’s death five years ago, my mom has become even more of a confidant than she was as I was growing up, and I’ve enjoyed watched her transition from Great Mom to MVP Grandma for my three nieces. My portrait project this year has been a great way to reconnect with old friends and cultivate new friendships, but on certain outings, like our afternoon drive up to Ruth’s Diner, it’s been a fantastic way of gaining perspective on the people who know me best.
