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I was pleasantly surprised this summer when Sam showed up at a wedding I was shooting in Auburn, AL. The surprise was rooted in the fact that Sam, my longest friend, now lives in Paris, France.

Sam and I grew up together; we’ve known each other since middle school where, Sam claims, I introduced myself as Stephen with a “ph” on the bus one day. For most of our ‘younger’ years we were inseparable, spending every day together playing Nintendo 64 and jumping on the trampoline or shooting off fireworks…we literally hung out every day.

As time went on and we grew older we spent less time together, but even after I moved to NYC and Sam to Paris, we’re still close friends. I got to go visit sam in Pairs last Fall and he was able to make the trip to NYC this past week to hang with me.

Sam is a student at AUP (the American University of Paris) and recently was elected the student president. He’ll be finishing his degree up next spring. Sam, thanks for coming to visit me and for letting me photograph you…it was great seeing you again! Best of luck with the presidency!