So, I've been in L.A. about a month. I know very few people and spend a lot of time being scared and lonely.
Then Misha Collins (of Supernatural) announced a flash mob for his Annual Melee of Kindness (AMOK) with his charity, Random Acts. In downtown L.A. Not far from where I live. He asked people to bring bags to hand out to the homeless in that area.
So I went to the dollar store and the Target, bought a lot of hygeine stuff (bandaids, tissues, anti-bacterial sanitizer, etc) and filled little plastic bags with it all. Must have been about thirty or so in all. I felt like it was such a small contribution, but being newly arrived and unemployed, it was all I could do.
I started smiling the second I saw a large crowd of people on the corner we were all to meet on. I knew exactly none of those people, but I felt like I was walking towards my dear friends. Supernatural fans never got it more right than when we called ourselves a Family.
So, I arrived and stood around waiting for instructions. My t-shirt was well-admired and I started talking to people. Eventually I met Mia and Leigh. Noting we'd all come alone, we decided to glom together. We talked about our love for the show and Misha. Time ticked on, past the appointed meeting time. People came over and we started handing things out to them. We were just saying it would be funny if everyone had passed out everything before Misha even got there, when I looked over Mia's shoulder.
"Um, turn around, ladies," I said, beaming and waving at the camera Misha was holding. Turns out we were all hanging out under a No Loitering sign as we waited. Misha (and his beautiful family) crossed the street and I felt a fluttering in my heart. There was Misha Collins, the man behind GISHWHES (and my gefilte fish aversion), one third of the main cast of Supernatural, standing close enough to touch (I refrained, but man was I tempted).
With a direction chosen, we all followed Misha, handing out our bags to people who were grateful to get them. We answered what organization we were with (Random Acts) and if someone wanted something specific, we played Telephone to find someone who had it (socks and jackets were the most popular). I eventually ended up near Vickie, Misha's wife, who is an amazing writer. I fangirled all over her and cooed at her daughter as Maison waved a flower in my face. West spent most of the time on his father's shoulder, looking confused at the large group of people his dad had assembled like Random Acts Avengers.
I'd been separated from Mia and Leigh by this time, but I found them and followed the grouping they were with. I'd learned two names already, I wasn't about to shy away from social interaction now. I caught up with them and stuck preety close to one or the other of them for the rest of the time.
When I ran out of things to give, I felt...restless. I wanted to give more, help more. Mia, Leigh and I started talking about what we could do with ourselves now. Mostly we all followed Misha and watched him interacting with the people we met. I knew Misha was crazy, I knew he was silly, I knew he was talented. But I got to see how damn genuinely kind he is. If he hadn't organized this, I'd never have made friends or stopped feeling alone or stopped thinking of myself over the course of a morning. I will always be grateful to him because of this. For all the lives he enriched today through organizing this, mine stands low among them.
After a sweet speech thanking us for our work, Misha headed back to his car with his family. We'd all been in 'follow Misha' mode up to this point, so we followed until we got to the same intersection we'd first gathered at. I suggested lunch because I didn't want to stop hanging out with the two awesome girls I'd met, so Mia, Leigh and I went to Chipotle.
The funny thing is, while we were eating lunch, Mia, Leigh and myself all mentioned having second thoughts before we showed up. We were nervous, we were tired, we didn't have to show up. I am so glad they did and I did. It was the kind of thing that doesn't leave you, but instead settles deep into you.
Thank you, Misha. Thank you, Random Acts.
