I began this trip in Staunton, Virginia and drove to Mountain City, Tennessee on Friday, February 19, 2010 to pick up my brother (being that I am female it was a prerequisite for the trip to bring along a male or a girl or two, an idea that I quickly ruled out being that all of the girls I know that were interested in going were more interested in Jimmy Wayne than the cause). We arrived in McAlester, Oklahoma late Saturday night covering 1153.73 miles in an 19 hour drive (excluding stops and detours due to road construction, accidents and my complete lack of a sense of navigation).
On the morning of Sunday February 21, 2010 we met up with Josh Lewis (the follow car driver donated by Hiscall Inc. that supports the Meet Me Halfway Campaign by following Jimmy Wayne along his way to keep him safe) and worked out the logistics of the walk with him. I would like to take a minute to tell you about this man, who I feel may be under-appreciated by MMH supporters and fans. I do not know much about him but I do know this: Mr. Lewis is the type of guy that can look you in the eye and offer a good strong handshake, which is a quality that I believe speaks a lot of a person. Mr. Lewis graciously answered every question that I had with a smile both that morning and the day of the walk. Words can not express how appreciative I was of his kindness. He told us that Mr. Wayne would be taking the day off due to some rather painful blisters on his feet needing some time to heal and apologized for the inconvenience. I was understanding of this and decided to kill some time with my brother and went to check out "Old Town" McAlester, which was pretty awesome. In this area of McAlester, Oklahoma was all of the old buildings and railroad tracks, you could even see the old brick road coming through the pavement! So cool...
The next morning, Monday, February 22, 2010, we got up early and met up with Mr. Lewis, Mr. Wayne and two other walkers and followed them an hour away to Talahini, Oklahoma where we would begin walking. After parking my car I began to become rather excited about the day and even bounced about the parking lot a wee bit and exclaimed so (an action that elicited a hilarious expression from Mr. Wayne, I think he thought I was craaaazy). Mr. Wayne, luckily, gave us a head start at that point while he finished gearing up. We walked for a good little bit before we got the word that Mr. Wayne had began walking himself and it was not long before he had not only caught up to us but passed us as well, briefly speaking to each of us as he went by. Despite my best efforts we could not keep up with him, the secret to which he later explained to me was his trekking poles...
I am still in awe of how Mr. Wayne is making this journey. He walked that day faster and stronger than any of us who were fresh to the road, painful blisters and all. After making it approximately three or four miles my brain began to tell my body it was time to stop (as I only cover three miles on my daily walks at home). I began to fall behind everyone else and momentarily thought "why in the world am I doing this?" A thought that I reprimanded myself for a couple of steps later as I should know better than anyone else what I was walking for. I started thinking about my past and all of the trials, disappointments, and hurts that I have experienced which motivated me to keep moving but at the same time weighed heavy on my heart. It was odd to me how the very thought that makes you push on is also a painful one. I can not imagine the emotional and psychological toll that it must have on Mr. Wayne. He walks with his thoughts and pain day in and day out yet seems to never be discouraged. He exuberates a resilience that I hope any foster child who follows this campaign will take as a character trait for themselves.
Now to answer the question that everyone keeps asking me since I got back, "what was it like to meet someone famous?" In all honesty I initially thought that I would be ecstatic, but when it came down to it I realized that all of my bottled up excitement was over the walk and not Mr. Wayne. In truth I was rather wierded out by it. After the walk, Mr. Lewis drove my brother and I back to my car with Mr. Wayne riding shotgun. The whole time I kept thinking that this man belonged within the turn of my radio dial and not in the same vehicle as me. Perhaps I feel this way because I feel that I have more fame than Mr. Wayne in it that every time I walk through my twin sister's front door, regardless of whether I have been gone for five minutes or five days, my niece and nephew (who my sister is fostering and will one day adopt) come running at me with arms spread wide for a hug screaming my name repeatedly. This is a fame that I posses not because my name has ever been up in lights but because they know and truly love me. This is a fame that I hope every celebrity will one day feel though it is difficult to achieve and harder yet to recognize and appreciate. So no, it was no big deal to meet someone famous.
P.S.
Please stop talking to me about how "hot" Jimmy Wayne is. Yes, he is a decent looking guy (though in need of a haircut). No, I do not care. The big picture here was supporting the Meet Me Halfway Campaign who can connect with other organizations, who in turn can help foster kids reach their goals that we are all entitled to regardless of the label thrust upon us as foster children amid all of our other difficulties that we have to endure. No one should turn 18 and be given luggage for their birthday and told good-bye and good luck as was done to me without any proper explanation of how the world turns or how to obtain, let alone understand, a lease or even how to search for housing. I was never even taught how to balance a checkbook, instead I as asked by my social worker to demonstrate how to change a light bulb to fulfill the standards of my independent living program. We can not be expected to be a minor one day and a full blown responsible adult the next.
-Felecia Kiser
