A Journey Back to Wichita Falls: Exploring Roots and Rediscovering Home
Returning to one’s roots can often be a journey filled with mixed emotions. Kim Porter, a writer and performer from Tempe, undertook such a journey, proving that the past can hold unexpected significance.
KIM PORTER: I was living in San Francisco when my daughter Colette was born. As she grew, I felt an unexpected urge to show her where I was from, which surprised me because pretty much all the memories of my hometown, Wichita Falls, Texas, were negative.
Kim Porter had left Wichita Falls, Texas, in the 1980s, determined never to return. With no family ties remaining in her hometown, there seemed little reason to revisit. Yet, as she watched her daughter Colette navigate the hills of San Francisco, Porter realized that the lessons she learned growing up were not suited for city life. Her childhood in Wichita Falls involved adventures like surviving goat-head stickers and tornadoes, while Colette’s experiences included eating sushi and balancing on streetcars.
Despite their different upbringings, Porter felt a growing yearning to share her roots with Colette. She reasoned that without a time machine, showing Colette her childhood world seemed impossible. However, in 2007, during a family road trip, Porter persuaded her husband to make a detour to Wichita Falls.
Upon arriving, Porter began pointing out familiar landmarks, recounting their past significance: “That was a Dairy Queen, that was an empty field, that’s where the 7/11 was before the tornado, and over there is where they rebuilt it, and where my mom worked after the divorce.” The journey took them past her childhood home, now appearing like a miniature model, and to a park where she recalled spending solitary moments during her youth.
Watching Colette climb the same chain ladder to the slide that Porter had climbed at her age, a transformative moment occurred. Porter felt a connection to her past, as if she had found that elusive time machine, allowing her to see herself as a child once again. This realization sparked a desire to share the joys of her hometown with Colette, from the swinging bridge to local delicacies like beanie burgers and chicken fried steak.
The visit, though brief, left a profound impact. As they left the town, Colette expressed her newfound affection for Wichita Falls, exclaiming from the back seat, “I’m just sad because what if we never see Wichita Falls again. I love Wichita Falls?!” In that moment, Porter also rediscovered her love for the place she once called home.
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