Miles to Go

by Miley Cyrus

  I had a break after the concert to cool down and clean up. I changed into a beautiful baby blue dress with sequins and baby blue feathers around the bottom. Finally, it was time for the big birthday moment. I’ve had birthday parties before. I’ve blown out candles and had people sing “Happy Birthday” to me. But I never imagined I’d be standing in front of Cinderella’s castle, gazing at a gigantic cake that won a “Design a Cake for Miley’s Birthday” contest, surrounded by sixteen foot-tall candles, while thousands of people sang for me. I “blew out” the candles (they were electric—it must have been someone’s job to make sure they turned off at the exact right moment), and the instant the candles went out, the fireworks started. Fireworks!

  How did I feel at that moment? I can’t really say. It was too big to absorb, and I still haven’t really taken it in. I just know that it was a night I never could have imagined. An amazing, unforgettable night. But it also had a bigger purpose. It raised money for a great cause, and that’s what makes it much more meaningful than the celebration of one sixteen-year-old’s birthday.

  After the party was over and all the friends left our suite, it was midnight. The park was empty and closed, and I was allowed to ride the rides. Can you imagine? Disneyland, all to myself. It was a once in a lifetime opportunity. But I was sooooo tired. We rode two rides, and then I turned to Mom and said, “Let’s just go home.” And so we did.

  A New Kind of Tour

  Like I’ve said, (Sorry! I get a little bit off topic sometimes!) life has been a roller-coaster ride from the moment I got on Hannah Montana. When the whole book was happening, I was in the middle of filming the Hannah Montana movie, working on songs for the soundtrack, and doing all the other stuff that makes up my day. I was SWAMPED! (Don’t get me wrong—busy is good! I love being busy. Even when I have downtime, I fill it up. The other night I was up till 4 in the morning... cleaning my room! Just because I couldn’t NOT be busy!)

  But I was—and am—so proud of the book that I was eager to get on the road to talk about it when it was finished. There were so many stories I wanted to share in these pages! Now, I’ve been on my music tours, and I’ve done promotion for my CDs and for Hannah Montana, but a book tour was different. I was going to be meeting people who had gotten a glimpse into some pretty personal parts of my life. I was going to hear what they had to say—good and bad. And this was the scary part—I was going to have to talk about all of this stuff out loud, on TV and on the radio.

  My mom knew I was a little stressed. So, like she always does, she made me feel better. She told me to remember that I share things all the time with my fans through my songs.

  It’s funny: even though I’m goofy and like to do silly things like make videos and post random thoughts on Twitter (used to!)—I’m actually pretty private... especially about writing. When I first come up with an idea for a song, I like to be alone. Writing songs has always come so naturally to me. The idea gets in my head and flickers around. A chord pops up that goes with it. A few beats bounce together and then—a song. But it always starts when I’m by myself. When I’m sitting on a porch or up in my room or even out on the tour bus.

  Writing a book was almost the same process. (Minus the beats and chords!) I was at no loss for things to talk about. Like I’ve said, I like to talk. But from the start, I was forced out of my safe and private space. I couldn’t do it all on my own. I had to ask my family questions, dig into our history. There was fun stuff—hearing my dad talk about what I was like when I was a kid. And there was sad stuff—like remembering my last conversation with Pappy. But while it wasn’t all rainbows, I had to keep reminding myself—a chapter is almost like a song. Once I could think of the book that way, it was easier to tie things together. (I’m not saying I did it perfectly! But I tried!) I’d get an idea, like I do when writing songs, for a chapter, and let it bounce. Eventually, I’d make it something bigger. But I liked starting small. Sort of the story of my life!

  Back to the tour. At the same time that the book was coming out, we were debuting the first single off of the Hannah Montana sound track. I may have mentioned it before—“The Climb.” (Sound familiar?) Now, as you all know because I’ve talked about it a lot, that song means a LOT to me. So to be out talking about that AND the book was a pretty awesome experience.

  Even though I had been pretty nervous about talking about the book, it was fun to hear people responding to it. Each person took away something different, which is exactly what I like about writing. Whether it is a love song, or a sad poem, or a book about your life so far, everyone sees it a little differently. Through one person’s eyes, the bullies in my life might not have meant anything, but the move from Tennessee to California might have been devastating. It is, like the saying goes, all in the eye of the beholder.

  Paging Miley Cyrus

  We made three stops for the book—New York City, Los Angeles, and then home to Nashville. I honestly didn’t know what to expect. Like I said, I’ve done other types of tours—but would this be the same? Would the fans wait in line to buy a book? Apparently, yes. When I got to the New York store, the line was out the door and around the block. It was crazy!

  At one point, before they let people in, I peeked out the window that looked down on the street. There were fans lined up for blocks, and each one was holding my book. Some were reading and smiling. Others were leafing through the pictures. But ALL of them were excited about a book that I wrote. It was kind of one of those great moments when you realize that there is a lot of good you can do in this world. I’m not saying that my book is going to single-handedly stop illiteracy, but if I got one of my fans to read who wouldn’t have before, that’s pretty fantastic. Those are the moments I really thank God for Hannah Montana.

  Doing the signing in New York and another one in L.A. had been pretty great. But coming home to do one in Nashville was the icing on the cake. It felt like coming full circle,the same way it had felt to film the movie in Tennessee. This was my chance to share with my town all the reasons I loved it. To really show people how growing up in Nashville had helped make me the person I am today. How the city is always in my heart and always keeping me grounded—no matter where I am. I had written it all down. Everyone could know now, and I was so excited.

  The store in Nashville was smaller than the other two had been, but I’m pretty sure the crowd was bigger. And rowdier. (No surprise! Yee-haw, Nashville!) People showed up that I never thought I’d see again. One of my old teachers was there. A girl who had gone to my school told me she had been bullied too. Another group of kids showed up from one of the organizations I volunteer for. Their joy and love were overwhelming.

  Before I knew it, the signing was over.

  Remember how I said I like to stay busy? Well, that day was a perfect example. Not only was I doing the signing, I was going to make a surprise appearance at a Nashville movie theater for a screening of Hannah Montana: The Movie. That meant a whole new round of butterflies in my stomach! What if the audience hated it? So you know what I did? I ordered up some good ole Southern comfort food—chicken and dumplings— and sat down for a meal. I’m sure I was a sight! (No one gets in the way of my chicken and dumplings!) All around me people were getting ready—dresses got brought in, my makeup team arrived, and I just sat in the middle, chowing down. I admit, stuffing your face full of food right before you are supposed to stuff yourself into a fancy dress might not be the best idea, but hey, those dumplings did the trick. I was energized and ready, and by the time I stepped onto the red carpet . . . the butterflies? They were long gone.

  Hopefully Not the Last Song

  You know how I’ve said I don’t know what I want to do in the future? (Why do you think I have a list of 7 things I want to be when I grow up? I can’t narrow it down!) Well, I know that movies are definitely a part of it. Filming the Hannah Montana movie had been such an amazing experience. Being with my fellow cast members through those months and then getting to see all that work pay off when the movie pre
miered? That was fantastic. There was so much of Miley Cyrus in Miley Stewart and Hannah Montana that if it had tanked, I would have kind of felt the audience didn’t like me. But they did! So all that hard work—the hours of repeating the same scene over and over again—was worth it. (Seriously, y’all. I think I can do the Hoedown Throwdown in my sleep.)

  But filming The Last Song was a whole new experience. I was working with a new character— someone totally different from Hannah or Miley Stewart. All the lessons I had learned filming the TV show were going to have to come into play again— getting into character, finding the voice I wanted, feeling the emotion. But whereas I have had years to do that with Hannah, I was only going to get months to work on The Last Song.

  This was a Nicholas Sparks movie. AND he had written it with me in mind. (No pressure!) I wanted to make sure that this was the best performance of my life so far. Luckily, I had a pretty great group of people to work with...and Tybee Island. Have I mentioned that place before? (Kidding! You know I love it there!) From the moment I walked onto the set, I felt like I was Ronnie Miller. She is a tough girl struggling to find her place in the world, and I grabbed on to that. And the best part was that everyone involved grabbed on to their parts. We became this tight little family there on Tybee Island. My co-star, Liam Hemsworth, and I would film a scene on the beach and then, as soon as the director called Cut, I’d be jumping in the water, splashing around. Like I said, Tybee is a magical place. I think being there, we all felt like we were getting this little break from reality.

  I was so incredibly sad when filming ended. I hated saying good-bye to my new family. But I have such amazing memories from my time there. I wrote some fantastic songs and had some unbelievable moments.

  Like when, after a long day of shooting, we all headed into the tiny town to grab food. And of course, the magic and emotions were getting to me. We sat down to eat and then noticed a band was playing. I sat there for a while, just enjoying the music and feeling like for once, the world had stopped spinning so fast. And then someone called out my name and before I knew it, I was up there, singing along! In this restaurant on an island off the coast of Georgia! How random? But it was moments like that, that made The Last Song such fun. You never knew what the day would bring. Sometimes horrible storms would come in, and we’d have to stop filming. Other days it was so sunny and beautiful, all you wanted to do was sit on the beach. But I guess that is sort of what life is—a series of storms to weather before the clouds clear and the skies turn blue. And if you can learn to appreciate them both, you’re in for a pretty sweet view.

  Living the Dream

  I don’t act or sing for awards. I don’t do it for the money. Those things are nice benefits of my work, but they don’t drive me.

  I do it all for the passion of the art. I love making music, performing, and bringing something special to the people who listen and watch. Stevie Wonder is blind, and it doesn’t matter if his awards shine like diamonds or are dull, dark rocks, so long as he loves his music. Beethoven still made music after he lost his hearing. When you take your senses away and still love what you’re doing, that’s when you know it’s you calling.

  * * *

  Hebrews 13:5-6

  DON’T LOVE MONEY; BE SATISFIED WITH WHAT YOU HAVE. FOR GOD HAS SAID, “I WILL NEVER FAIL YOU. I WILL NEVER ABANDON YOU.”

  Although I know I’m earning a lot of money, it goes into some mysterious account somewhere and doesn’t really affect me. I’m just doing the work that makes me happy. Pappy always said, “Love what you do for a living and you won’t have to work another day in your life.”

  I don’t have a big fat wallet or credit cards to buy whatever I want. It’s one benefit of being a child star: that later on, when I do have access to the money, I’ll be able to look back at this time and know that I was happy following my dream without material rewards. I hope I won’t need that lesson, but I’m glad it’s there for me. At the end of life, all you have is what you felt as you were going through life. Pappy said this, and now that Pappy’s gone Dad says it, too. You don’t have cool bags and a list of parties you were invited to. Press clippings, even music albums: none of the achievements or material things matters in the end. You can’t take them with you. What really matters, and what you have in your heart at the end of your days, is the love and joy you lived and gave.

  People sometimes ask me if I feel like I’m missing out on having a normal childhood. Do I ever think about the what-ifs? Would I do anything differently if I could do it all over again?

  After all I’ve seen (the hardest childhoods) and all I’ve experienced (living my dream) it would never occur to me to dwell on what I might be missing. I know that I’m not going to a real school. I’m not attending homecoming games or a prom. I can’t go to a movie without being recognized and all that entails.

  Yes, there are fun parts of being a normal teenager that I haven’t experienced and never will. And sure, there are a lot of days when I don’t want to wake up at 6:30 every morning. (I'm sure the same thing would happen if I went to school.) There are days when I don’t get enough sleep and don’t want to get up at all. Sometimes the set feels like a prison. There are certain sacrifices I am making. And there are sacrifices my family is making for me. In the quieter moments, which are few and far between, I think about what I’m missing. I wonder, but I don’t wish. It’s all worth it when I watch an episode of Hannah on TV, or listen to a cut of a song that captures what I wanted to say, or play my new CD for a child in the hospital. The good outweighs the bad. It isn’t right to complain. I don’t. I can’t. I can’t imagine holding on to the negative when there is so much that is great in my life.

  I found my dream early. I’m living it. Lots of people find their dreams. I think the only way I’m different is that my dream just happened to come true before I entered high school. I feel grateful. I know how fortunate I am. I’m not so naïve that I think any dream is achievable for any person in any country on this earth. But I do know this for certain—that you’ll never find your dream if you don’t reach for it as far and as high as you can.

  Things Happen for a Reason

  When my mom was pregnant with me, my dad called her from the road. He says he had a vision. An instinct. The same way Dad plays music by ear, he likes to play life by ear. He says his intuition told him that the baby in my mom’s womb was destined to be something that represented the light. Something positive. He said, “You know what? I just feel like that little baby is Destiny Hope Cyrus.” When Dad’s famous intuition talks, we listen. So Mom said, “That’s it. That’s her name.” But as soon as I was born I became “Smiley,” then “Smiley Miley,” then Miley. I don’t think anyone ever actually called me Destiny, so I decided to legally change my name to Miley.

  My parents named me Destiny Hope because they believed that my destiny was to bring hope to people. My life does feel driven by destiny right now, but maybe that’s only because my biggest dreams are actually coming true. Most people go through ups and downs, successes and failures, to figure out their true calling. My dad was a boxer for a long time, and then he thought he’d be a baseball player. But then he had a dream that told him to buy a left-handed guitar and start a band. He did, and the rest is history. I came across my calling early, and there is always the chance I could fail.

  While I was growing up, my dad would remind me that Thomas Edison failed 10,000 times when trying to make a storage battery. When a reporter asked Edison about his failures, he said, “I have not failed seven hundred times. I have not failed once. I have succeeded in proving that those seven hundred ways will not work.” I get it. The most important ingredient in success is failure.

  Mandy sometimes calls me the most unlucky lucky person in the world. My heels break. My hair dryers blow. I got stuck on the Revenge of the Mummy ride at Universal Studios. I was stuck in Splash Mountain at Disneyland for half an hour. (I’m particularly unlucky at amusement parks. Except when it comes to birthday parties.) I was st
anding on the red carpet with Taylor Swift and Katy Perry, and a bee came up and stung one of us. Which one? Me, of course (unlucky). A few days ago, I was at the mall with Mandy and I had my period and no tampons (unlucky). I went to the bathroom to buy one, but I had no change (unlucky). Then something changed. As I stood that day staring at the tampon dispenser, four tampons fell out of it, right into my hands (lucky!). And later when I withdrew twenty dollars from an ATM, the machine gave me sixty bucks (lucky!). (I returned it, of course!) The way I think of it is that the little bad moments make the little good moments better. That doesn’t mean I necessarily enjoy forgetting my lines or messing up a dance move, but weathering all those everyday frustrations and victories helps us practice for the bigger disappointments that are sure to come along.

  I don’t know how long my fame and success will last, but if years from now I’m playing coffeehouses instead of stadiums, that’s okay so long as I’m still inspired and still inspiring a few people. I’ll keep doing my art. And, like I said when I talked about my sixteenth birthday party: for now, while the spotlight is on me, I want to use it well. I have an opportunity to make a difference in the world. I may have changed my name, but that doesn’t mean I’m saying no to the destiny my parents envisioned for me. I don’t want Hope as a middle name. But I sure want to try to bring it to everyone I meet or touch. I wrote a song called “Wake Up America” about taking care of our planet. It’s on my album Breakout, which to date has sold over a million copies. How many chances do we have to remind that number of kids that this is their planet to love and save? That we have to protect the future? I have that chance, and I want to make the most of it. I meet kids in hospitals and schools and hope I can make them smile for that one quick moment, and I want to keep doing bigger things for organizations like City of Hope and Youth Service America that really make a long-term difference.