Surprise

In my opinion, there is nothing more exciting than attending a Surprise Party. I love being in the room full of people when the call rings out, "SSSHHHHH, he's/she's coming, shhhhhhh". And then, in an instant, it's so silent that you could hear a pin drop. A moment later, your unsuspecting friend walks into a room full of "Surprise!!!!" and nearly falls backward because of the shock wave of instantly being surrounded by their closest family and friends. Did I mention that I love surprise parties?

My parents threw me a surprise birthday party when I turned 13 years old. And they tried so hard to keep it a secret. They planned a waterski party for me on our dock. Invited all of my best friends. If it wasn't for one tiny spoken mistake by a friend previous to the party, I would have been completely shocked. And even though I was kind of nervous as to how I would act surprised when the big, "surprise" came, I was still shocked and surprised. Because like I said, there is nothing like instantly being surrounded by all of your favorite people...in an instant.

Today we went to a surprise party. The people in this photo mean a lot to me. They are the parents of a very good friend of ours. We have a very special connection with this family. We even vacation with them. They treat our children just as lovingly as if they were their own Grandchildren. And it was a very special experience seeing the look on his face when he unexpectedly walked into a room full of his very favorite people. Shock. Smiles. Tears. And hugs. Exactly the kind of reaction that we all expected from him.

I look over a hundred photos for the family. But when choosing one for my blip, I knew right away that this would be the photo that captured the day. Because this photo is very emotional. This is the moment when he stood up in front of everyone and thanked us all for being there. This is the moment when he placed his hand over his heart and told everyone that the most important thing in his life is family. His family and his friends. And then he began to cry. And then his wife began to cry. And many of us felt the tears spring to our eyes. And it was a perfect moment. A moment that I am so happy to have captured with my camera. An emotional photograph that speaks volumes about the quality and sincerity of these two very special people in our lives.