Chapter Two
Sitting in his office, Bishop Jimmy Snow slowly read over the contract in front of him. He looked up at his wife, Yolanda, as he came to a portion he did not completely understand. “I think we need to let a lawyer read this over before we decide,” he said.
“What for, Jimmy? It’s a standard contract,” she answered.
Anderson Carter, the executive producer of the show, sat next to her, smiling broadly. “Go ahead and let your attorney look over it, Bishop. That’s fine with me. Or if you have any questions, I’d be happy to answer them for you.”
Bishop Snow pointed to a line in the contract. “It says here that you have final approval over what is shown on television. I think that I should have the final say.”
“That simply means we’ll do some editing before it’s shown. We are going to have cameras running almost twenty-four hours per day. We have to edit it for content.”
“Twenty-four hours a day?” Bishop Snow shook his head. “No, we wouldn’t have any privacy at all.”
Yolanda Snow looked back and forth between the two men, desperately trying to hide her deep desire to do the television show. “Jimmy, you promised me you’d consider this. I mean, I think it would be good for the church.”
“Yolanda, do you really want a camera crew following us everywhere we go?” He turned to Anderson. “I think it would be better if the cameras just followed me at the church. That would be a lot less intrusive.”
Anderson sat quietly for a few seconds before responding. “Well, that’s not the show the network wants, but I guess I could talk to them about it.”
Yolanda suddenly sat forward in her chair. “What about me? If the cameras only follow you at the church, I won’t be on the show,” she said anxiously.
Bishop Snow and Anderson looked at her surprised, as they both suddenly realized just how much she wanted to do the television show. Before their marriage ten years earlier, Yolanda Snow had aspirations of being a movie star. She had participated in theatre in high school and college. In her hometown of Greenburg, S.C., she had a key role in a local production of August Wilson’s play Fences. Right after that, she had moved to Atlanta and immediately had been cast in a low-budget independent film. Yolanda’s on-screen time was less than two minutes, yet she sincerely hoped it would lead to more roles and a successful acting career.
Instead, she had met and fallen deeply in love with the young, dynamic pastor, Jimmy Snow. At the time, he had been a widower with a five-year-old son and seven-year-old daughter. After only an eight-month courtship, they were married. Yolanda believed that the love she felt for him and his children far outweighed her acting aspirations. She was content to head the church drama department and occasionally act in a local theatre group.
However, when she’d seen the posting on Craigslist advertising a new reality show for ministers and their families, she felt chills of excitement coursing through her veins. To Yolanda, it represented the chance to fulfill her long-dormant dream of being on television, while at the same time, feeding her secret passion for reality TV shows. She’d contacted the show’s producer and tentatively agreed to do the show without telling her husband. Now, all she had to do was convince Jimmy it was a good idea. She tried to be nonchalant and discreet, but as she sat in his office watching the chance slip through her fingers, she’d suddenly become frantic.
Seeing the look in her eyes, Bishop Snow tried to soothe her. “Yolanda, you will be a part of the show. As the first lady, the cameras would also have the opportunity to follow you as you work in ministry as well.” He looked over at Anderson for help. “Isn’t that correct?” he asked.
Anderson looked over at Yolanda, then back at Bishop Snow. He’d promised the network that this show would dig deeply into the personal lives of all of the ministers it featured. There was no way he was going to settle for a watered-down version, filmed only at the church. Mentally, he began going over the other names on his list, feeling the Snows were a waste of his time. “Listen, Bishop Snow, I have to agree with your wife. If we only film at the church, the show will be nothing more than your sermons and you sitting in the office.”
“That should be enough,” Bishop Snow answered.
“The viewing public wants to see more. They can walk into any church in America and hear a sermon or observe their pastor at his desk. We want to take them into your home and show them what goes on in your everyday life. This will be a groundbreaking television series.”
“That’s right, Jimmy. You’ve watched Run’s House with me. He’s a minister, and you enjoyed watching him interact with his wife and children,” Yolanda said.
Bishop Snow sighed heavily. “That’s different. Rev. Run was a celebrity before the reality TV show. You know I have no aspirations to be a celebrity pastor. I have nothing against anyone who does, but it simply isn’t me.” He picked up the contract and held it out toward Anderson. “I’m sorry, but my wife and I will not be able to do this.”
Before Anderson could take the contract, Yolanda snatched it from her husband’s hand. “Why, Jimmy? You are always talking about how you want to reach more people. Now that you have the opportunity to reach millions, you are saying no.”
“I would love to bring millions to Christ. You know that, Yolanda. But I don’t want millions of prying eyes coming into our home. I’m a simple, private person. Most of all, I’m a man of God. I will not allow TV cameras to come into our home and disrupt our lives.”
“We don’t want to disrupt your lives at all. Of course, having cameras around will be an adjustment, but I promise that we’ll do our best not to be too intrusive,” Anderson said.
Bishop Snow shook his head. “I’m sorry. I just don’t see how that’s possible.”
“I’m sorry too, Bishop. I was really looking forward to you and Mrs. Snow being a part of this venture.” Anderson stood up to leave, while holding his hand out for the contract that Yolanda was clutching tightly.
“Maybe you should leave us alone for a few moments. My husband and I need to discuss this in private,” Yolanda suggested. She walked over to the office door and opened it. “Give me a few moments to talk him into it,” she whispered to Anderson before closing the door.
“Yolanda, I know you love reality TV shows, but let’s just stick to watching them, okay?”
Plopping down in a chair, Yolanda folded her arms across her breasts. “You’re being unreasonable, Jimmy.”
“I don’t think I am. You watch those shows all the time. You know they are full of nothing but drama. Why in the world do you want to be a part of that?”
“You can’t blame the show for the drama in people’s lives. Besides, we don’t have any of that going on in our house.”
He gave her a side-eyed look. “We have two typical teenagers at home. I love them both, but they are not perfect kids. We don’t have a perfect life.”
“So what? We are a real family with real problems. That’s what the show is going to be about. You know some people think ministers and their wives never go through anything. This is our opportunity to show that we are just like everybody else.”
“I don’t know about this. What will my parishioners think of me being involved in a reality television show?”
Yolanda stood up from the chair and walked over to her husband. She stood behind his chair and lovingly wrapped her arms around his neck. She whispered sweetly in his ear, “They will be proud of their pastor. Besides, just think of all the people who will never walk into this church that you can reach? Instead of them watching other reality shows full of drama and sin, they can watch us deal with our family in a godly manner.”
“You do have a point. There needs to be another choice in programming.”
“Exactly,” she purred. “Our show will be something that people can watch with their family. And the money we’ll be paid can be donated directly to the church.”
“Am I ever going to win an argument in our marriage?” he jokingly asked.
She smiled as she slid the contract onto the desk in front of him. “Not this one.”
Jimmy Snow awakened the next morning to the sound of his doorbell ringing over and over again. He leaned over and checked the clock. “It’s six in the morning. Who in the world could that be?” he wondered aloud.
“It’s the camera crew. You should be up and dressed by now,” Yolanda answered.
Jimmy rolled over in bed and suddenly noticed that she was fully dressed with her hair and makeup done. “You look great, baby,” he said.
“Thanks, sweetie, now get up and get dressed. I’m going to let them in so they can start setting things up.” She rushed out of the bedroom, leaving him alone.
Jimmy slowly rolled out of bed and went to the bathroom to shower. As he stepped out of his master bathroom several moments later, wrapped in only a towel, he was startled to find a tall, lanky white man in the middle of his bedroom.
“What are you doing in here?” he demanded.
“I’m setting up. We won’t be standing around in your bedroom. I’ll just set the camera up, and we’ll control it remotely.”
“No, you are not putting a camera in my bedroom. Get out of here right now!” Jimmy pointed toward the door, but the young man ignored him. He continued setting up the camera equipment. “Did you hear what I just said?” Jimmy yelled.
Yolanda suddenly burst into the bedroom. “What’s going on in here?” she asked.
“He doesn’t want me to set up the camera,” the young man replied. He rolled his eyes behind Jimmy’s back.
“Honey, just leave this man alone and let him do his job,” Yolanda said. “Come downstairs and eat your breakfast.”
Jimmy looked down at himself and back at Yolanda several times. “I’m not dressed, and there’s a camera in the middle of my bedroom. I knew this show was going to steal all of our privacy,” he huffed.
Yolanda sighed; then she slowly walked to the other side of the bedroom. Quietly, she unfolded a room divider and set it up. “You can get dressed right here, Jimmy. I know it’s a bit inconvenient, but there’s no need to make such a big deal out of it.”
Jimmy retrieved his clothes from the closet, then slowly walked behind the screen. As he dressed, he heard the cameraman quietly chuckling at him under his breath.