The Tale of a Man and his Dog

It all began on January 24 2004. Yes, there is an exact date. Well, it could have been the 25th, but I wrote the 24th down in my journal. It was the winter that Winter Blitz, a Christian convention I attended every year through high school, was in Louisville, Kentucky as opposed to Lexington. The fact that the city changed had nothing to do with the convention. It was the fact that there was a man there who caught my attention. Try as I may to find him, I still don't know his name to this day. All I know is that he was planning to walk across America and that I had never heard anything like it before. It was as though he had opened a window that I had never thought to look through before. Duh! Walk across America. It didn't sound impossible. In fact it sounded like a pretty sweet idea. Think about it...

WALK ACROSS AMERICA! As he announced himself, his plan and his reasons to the crowd I could tell that some people thought he was crazy, some were worried and gave their donations or best wishes and then there was me, the utterly confused and totally obsessively impressed. The man was older and seemed quite cute, content and CALM for someone about to travel 3,000 miles by foot with his dog as his number one companion. A table was set up outside of the convention center with the man's information, a donation box and a list of people who had volunteered to walk part of the stretch with him. After his announcement I left the center and just stared at his table. I gazed in wonder and disappointment at the huge map of his route and how it didn't pass through my small town in Kentucky. I stared at his long list of walking volunteers and debated whether to sign it or not. I guess I hadn't put much thought into the logistics of his journey such as where he would stay, how long it would take and the weather conditions he would have to face. All I could think about was "Oh my gosh, I HAVE TO GO TOO!" I had seriously considered asking him if he wanted another companion other than his dog. Don't get confused here...it wasn't that I wanted to steal or share this thunder. It was the idea of giving up EVERYTHING to go on a journey with nothing that excited me the most. I didn't need recognition, just the opportunity to do something so outrageous and worth-while for a good cause and spiritual satisfaction. I felt so ready right then and there to leave my youth leader, my friends, my family and GO.

I didn't leave my life to find the world of America. Not then anyway. A whirlwind of events happened in my life, both good and bad RIGHT after my encounter with the man and his dog that I never saw. Two months later when my 18th birthday came up I sat down and created a list of 18 things I wanted to accomplish before I die. Number 1: Walk across America. Without even thinking it was already on the paper and since then it's been a dream...an outrageous worth-while dream of mine to do what I thought at one time was the craziest thing I had ever heard. I never thought my dream would come as soon as this summer or with as many companions, but I am so psyched. It's time to leave everything behind, carry nothing and gain something new. This time...I'm ready!