The Countdown Begins

By the time many of you read this, we will finally be on the bus to Washington, D.C., by way of Richmond, Va. first.

I'm writing this just a few hours before I lie down and try to get some sleep, but who can sleep?

Ever since I was a child, I always had a hard time sleeping before a big trip or event, always falling asleep just hours, it seemed, before I would have to be up and ready to go. I was too excited to sleep, thinking about all the people I would see and all the things we would do when we got there. I suspect it will be the same for this trip too.

Mom and I have gathered all of our things, and we've prepared for the worst. Waterproof boots, layers of clothing, toilet paper -- you name it, we've got it.

And if you've been following my adventure at all then you must know I'll have a digital camera for still photos, a small digital video recorder for our time on the National Mall, professional digital video recorder for the bus and my laptop. Whew.

When I first conceived this idea to follow a group of folks from Montgomery, it seemed that this day would never get here. After all the blogging, credential drama and preparation it's finally here. But it's still hard to wrap my mind around it all. I'm not sure it will feel real until we're at our destination, just a few people among the many.

It seems fitting that our "home base" will be a city that shares the distinction with Montgomery of having once been the capital of the Confederate States of America. I'm pretty sure that the people from that time -- black and white -- never envisioned a day like the one we're hoping to witness on Tuesday.

After spending what Google Maps says is nearly 10 hours on a bus, we'll arise early again Tuesday in hopes of getting on the Metro well before the sun gets up, to see how close we can really get -- just to make sure it's all still real. Whether a million back, or a few thousand back, we'll be there and that's what counts. That's what will make it all worth it.