Essay on Duality: Brad Phillippe

Kelly Latham

BDS 102

February 8, 2012

Essay on Duality

            The relationship that I wish to focus on is my relationship with Brad Phillippe.  Brad is my boyfriend of two and a half years, but he is mainly my best friend.  If you would ask my other friends, we don’t usually act as a couple; just as a couple of people who like to hang out and poke fun at each other.  We met when I started attending youth group at Lawrence Heights Christian Church in December of 2008.  Although we were introduced in December, we didn’t actually become friends until summer of 2009 at Mission Lake Christian Camp.  This is the place that relates to our ‘connection.  Mission Lake Christian Camp is located in Horton, Kansas; about an hour and a half North of Lawrence.  To most people, it just looks like a run down camp that is small and doesn’t have much to do.  However, if you were to ask any kid that has attended camp there, it is the best place in the world.  All year, we always say that we miss camp and want to go back.  It is in no way because of the great facilities or games; in the showers there is hardly enough water or wash your nose, and the games can get pretty dumb, but the people are fantastic.  All my closest friends are from Mission Lake Christian Camp, and at least once a week, we all say to each other, “I miss camp”.  When I think of MLCC, I don’t think of it as the place that I met Brad, but the place that I met all the best people I know.  It is more than a place that connects me and him, but it connects me and him to all of my other friends.  Brad, unlike so many of my other friends from MLCC, lives in Lawrence.  He attends Lawrence High School, like I did last year, and will be graduating this spring.  Currently, he is taking all the art classes offered at Lawrence High, just like I did; photography, drawing, portfolio, digital imaging, and some others.  After graduation, he hopes to attend KU and be part of the Illustration program, like I am.  He has two brothers, one of which lives here and attends KU and the other who lives in Fort Worth, Texas.  His parents also live in Lawrence.  There are also many pets in his family; we often call his house “The Zoo”.  When I first met him, he had four dogs and four cats.  Now, they have four dogs and one cat; two of the dogs being the same dogs as when we first met.  In addition to art, he also likes to play video games.  He works at GameNut downtown, a used video game store.  Some significant factors in out relationship are religion, art, and friends.  We both attend Lawrence Heights Christian Church (in addition to MLCC), and religion is very important to both of us.  Both of us enjoy photography, drawing, and other types of art.  I feel that a main factor in out relationship is also our friends (mostly the ones from MLCC).  Our relationship is based on friendship, not attraction, and I feel that that is the most important aspect.