Spokane Engagement Photographer: Jake & Joanna

They met in middle school. In some cases, people that meet in middle school are friends for a while and then they begin to date in high school. Life happens, but in the end they stay together and get married. Those are beautiful stories - but it's not this story. Jake and Jo did in fact become friends in middle school, and Jake did really like her. The problem is, not a lot of girls "like a super awkward guy with acne" as jake would put it, or someone who wore the exact same bright sweatshirt every single day (as Jo would put it). The point really is that these two were great friends, but the interest wasn't mutual. Flash forward to graduation, and these two would go separate ways - Jake to the military and Jo to Gonzaga. 

 Yeah, not so promising. In fact, they didn't talk at all until something very specific happened. 

 I don't know about you guys, but a couple years ago something very significant happened in my life. The Gonzaga basketball team played in the National Championship game against North Carolina. I remember exactly where I was sitting, and who I was sitting with during the entirety of that game.  Jake had a better seat though, as he was AT that game. The reason this matters is because it was in the middle of this game that Jake decided to text his old friend, Joanna. 

 They would text back and forth, catch up, and over the course of the next couple months become friends again. I asked Jake if he texted her out of interest (aka, trying to pursue her again) or if he did so out of general good will (just to say hi). In this case, it was the later - he was in the military and wasn't going to be in Spokane for a long time, so he had no reason to pursue her. 

 At least, that was the logical thought (for both of them). The problem is, your feelings don’t often care about logic. So when the texting turned into the occasional phone call (even though they were half a world away, with Jake deployed in Iraq) feelings started to develop. First for Jake, who realized the phone calls were going longer and deeper than normal. But then with Jo. She told me that she didn't start liking him right away, that it was more of a process, but as the conversations got deeper, she noticed that Jake would REALLY listen to her. Jake would really care about what she was saying. She also found herself looking forward to talking with him, and telling him how she did on a test, or on a paper for school. It was then she realized she was in trouble. 

Trouble because Jo is a logical thinking person, and it isn't logical to try and have a relationship with someone who lives on the other side of the world. Unfortunately, feelings don't care about logic, so that relationship started, and grew into something incredible. Now, these two friends from junior high are getting married, they are saying "I want you and no other" and it's an amazing thing. I can't wait to be a part of their wedding day, to photograph all those memories and moments. But until then, I hope you love these engagement photos.