the images I’d captured and, satisfied I’d gotten “the shot,” I lifted my Canon back up and began shooting small details like the red heart Bentley had given Maisy, and a close up of the newly engaged couple’s fingers intertwined as they held hands. It was those little details that really captured a moment like this.
As much as I wished I were on a beach somewhere, lying under the sun with a woman, basking in the afterglow of a between-the-sheets marathon, I had to admit that I missed this. I missed the simplicity of taking pictures. My career hadn’t exactly gone in the direction I’d hoped it would when I was a kid. Growing up, I’d idolized Ansel Adams, Robert Frank, and Henri Cartier-Bresson.
In my teens and early twenties, I’d started my career doing still photography, even winning an IPA at age twenty-one for a wildlife series. But sadly, there wasn’t a lot of money in still photography. I’d briefly considered doing headshot photography in LA or New York, or journalistic-style wedding photography, but when I was offered assistant cameraman on a National Geographic documentary, I’d jumped at the chance.
That was nearly twelve years ago, and I hadn’t stopped working since. I’d been behind the camera, but I’d been shooting television, films, and documentaries. Making other people’s visons come to life.
I wasn’t complaining. I knew that I was lucky. I’d traveled the world, seen six of the seven wonders, and met incredible people.
When I first started out, I’d spend my days off exploring whatever location I was at with my camera. But I couldn’t remember the last time I’d shot anything for fun, for pleasure. Somewhere along the way, I’d lost my inspiration, my passion. And lately, I was beginning to think I’d lost myself.
“Jackson Briggs, how have you been?” I turned and found my best friend Holden’s mom Mrs. Reed standing behind me. I guessed I was sort of related to her now, since my baby sister Harmony had married her oldest son Hudson.
I was pretty sure if my siblings kept getting married, I’d be related to half the town before long. That’s what happened when you had seven brothers and a sister and they all settled down.
Growing up, I’d spent almost as much time at the Reed’s house as I had at my own. Holden and I had bonded at a young age over our desire to get out of our small town. He’d had big dreams of being a professional bull rider and I’d wanted to be the next Frans Lanting.
And we both had made it out of Wishing Well. Holden travelled as much as I did, and had reached his goal of becoming an international champion with several huge endorsement deals.
“I’m doing fine, ma’am.”
“Have you heard from Holden lately?”
“We text, yeah. I congratulated him on winning up in Wyoming.” Cheyenne Frontier Days was the big daddy of all the rodeos, and Holden had come out the champion.
“Yeah, that was a big win for him.” She smiled but it didn’t reach her eyes.
I knew that she worried about Holden, and missed him. She always had. He’d started competing when he was ten, and I remembered that at that first rodeo, she’d bitten all of her nails to the point that they were bleeding.
“How long are you in town for?”
“Just a couple of days.” I didn’t have all the details yet, since I was just doing the job as a favor, but I knew that principal production started Monday.
“Loretta!” Mrs. Greenberg, the church organist, called out, waving her handkerchief in the air.
“I’ve gotta take Mrs. G to the senior center. Stop by the house if you have the time. Good to see you.”
“You, too.”
“Jackson!” I heard my name again and turned around to see a woman that I’d never met in person, but who was definitely part of the family. My very pregnant sister-in-law Mia was rushing up to me. I recognized her from video chats and pictures. I hadn’t been able to attend the wedding because I’d been on location in the U.K. She threw her arms around my neck. Which wasn’t easy since, at six foot three, I had an entire foot on her. “Thank you so much for doing this.”
“Of course!”
“Okay, that’s enough,” my little brother Travis teased. When she let me go, though, I could see that he wasn’t really joking as he pulled her into his arms and planted a very territorial kiss on her.