Here we are, Governor Phil Bredesen and I, caught in the rain. We are both taking part in Andrea Walks, a fundraiser for Child Advocacy Centers. The gov’s wife, the aforementioned Andrea, is leading the trek from Centennial Park to Percy Warner Park. It’s been raining since our first step. But it’s a gentle, warm rain. It’s kind of nice.
I’m doing six miles, but not the pavement-pounding six miles I had expected. It’s more of a leisurely crawl down West End (which turns into Harding Road somewhere, not sure where) and into Belle Meade. We’re stopping about every 10 minutes, it seems, maybe to let all the stopped traffic try to move past our police escort. We're walking with the First Lady of Tennessee, of course, so those folks are just going to have to wait a bit.
Now we’re standing in the parking lot of Belle Meade City Hall, where little children have come out to greet all the walkers. I have to tell the governor what I’ve been thinking for the past two years. So I walk up to him, stick out my hand, tell him my name, and say thanks. Thanks for all the things he did as mayor of Nashville that make this such a great city today. Many of my favorite things in Nashville are things he had a hand in, and I list those for him. He asks me how long I’ve lived here, what I do, tells me he’s glad I’m here and thanks.
I’m sure I cut an impressive figure, standing there in my soaked-through T-shirt, ballcap and sweatpants.
Sometimes I am strangely brave. Most times I am not.
Fortunately, even when I am in the mood to hang back, I seem to cross paths with very friendly folks. The woman who parked next to me struck up a conversation and we walked the full six miles together (she went on to do the final five miles inside Percy Warner; soaked to the skin, I heard the call of a long hot shower followed by tapas at Drunken Fish). A sweeter soul you could never meet.
And who else did I see on the walk but my friend from the summer 10K! We really are going to get together soon. We both promised.
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