The Roads we Travel

This past week-end led to a lot of riding time thankfully. It was definitely some much needed mental time. There have been many times that I wanted to go for a ride in the past several months to try to clear my thoughts when I couldn’t go. Sometimes it was a scheduling thing, other days it was due to rain and sometimes it was just due to darkness. I know a lot of people ride after dark, but I have a hubby who is protective and does not want me riding alone after dark. For that I am thankful. We live in the country where there are no street lights and lots of deer, raccoons, possum etc. and it can be hazardous to a biker.

The long ride I took on Saturday was absolutely a very relaxing and calming ride. This particular ride was beautiful in every way. The weather was warm but not as scorching hot as it has been. There was a breeze blowing but it was not stifling hot and in some areas was truly refreshing. The road I traveled was one that I first went on with my hubby a few weeks back and we had gotten caught in a couple of rain showers. Then the next time I took it was when I decided to go straight into town rather than turning off where we had, and I ended up in that awful construction with the road that was all grooves and was NOT fun.

Saturday I took the safe route because I don’t know if the road construction is completed yet or not. There were many areas of shade, and of course sun, all along the route. The breezes, as I mentioned, were very refreshing and the air smelled crisp and clean. This is a country ride on back roads mostly so there were plenty of flowers and pretty things to see and fortunately no critters deciding to run across the road or anything.  It was for once just an easy going ride with no weather surprises or crazy drivers, which is a miracle in itself these days. I got to thinking on this ride as well as the other rides over the week-end about the roads. There were smooth roads, bumpy roads, curves and hills. There were also plenty of “tar snakes”, potholes, manhole covers, and patchwork areas to keep me on my toes and focused on what I was doing.

As I got thinking more about all of these types of road issues I realized they all represent things that happen in our lives as well. We can be cruising along smoothly in our lives, then all of as sudden there’s an unexpected hill to climb or a bump in the road. We are faced with a challenge we didn’t see coming and are forced to deal with it head on in order to get over the hill and head down the other side to smooth sailing again. There are also those times when we think we are going one way, but then we are faced with a curve and we have to go around it in order to get back on track. Then there are those “tar snakes”. For anyone who doesn’t know what I am referring to, it’s those areas on the road where they have added tar as a crack filler. Some roads seem to have more snakes than solid road. I was trying to figure out what they compare to and then it hit me. They are like the lies and half truths that we are told that wiggle their way into our minds and cause us to doubt or question things. Satan is so good at trying to deceive us into having feelings of inferiority, insecurity, and self doubt. There are so many people we come into contact with that will fill the role of the tar snakes if we allow them to. We must strive to not allow those seeds of doubt to take root, but it is so hard sometimes to weed them out. Then there is the patchwork. These are the areas in our lives where we feel the need to mend things. We don’t totally have to redo anything, just patch things up in our relationships or some little things we just need to “fix”.

There are the pothole and manhole covers we have to avoid along the way as well.  These are more simply just small interruptions to what we are doing that we have to quickly deal with and move on. There was a situation Sunday that required a quick decision. I saw someone with a broken down bike on the side of the road. I know riders are supposed to be there for other riders, but I also know as a female riding alone, my protective hubby would not recommend me helping out in this situation. There was plenty of other motorists who could stop to help or he could flag down if he needed them and I did not stop. I instead say a prayer that he would get the help he needed. Such it is with other situations we find ourselves in, we have to decide if it’s a situation we can, or should, assist with or not. I always ask myself what my hubby would say if I asked him, and what would Jesus say. In this day and time, safety must be our first and foremost thought in these types of situations sadly. We no longer live in a society where we can trust others like when I was growing up and everyone helped anyone in need, no second thoughts about it. As a woman riding alone, my thoughts are very different in many ways compared to how I was in my younger years. The world has changed and that makes me sad for my grandchildren. They will never know the carefree days of being able to be out from dawn to dusk with no phones and no worries about safety, just simply to be home before dark.

The last road hazard I encountered was on my last ride of the week-end on Sunday. Just after leaving my home, there was someone mowing a neighbor’s yard. You guessed it, he was blowing all of the very thick clumps of grass all over the road. The entire lane I was in was covered for approximately 20 yards I would say. The vehicle used to haul the mower was parked on the opposite side of the road further hindering traffic. I  came to a complete stop, there was no safe way for me to travel over that much grass. While the fella mowing was looking at me stopped in the road, I pointed at the mess he was making in the road and told him it was illegal. I’m sure he didn’t hear me over the mower and probably didn’t care, but I spoke up anyway. After the oncoming car went through I went over into the opposite lane to safely pass by. The grass experience also was like life. Sometimes the road we are on in life becomes dangerous and makes us come to a stop and reassess things. After looking at our options, we then press on. Sometimes we choose wisely, and sometimes we don’t, but its all part of the process of living.

As I returned home, I was thinking how peaceful and uneventful my riding experiences had been the whole week-end. Then just as I went to park my bike and get off to unlock my building I got the shock I never expected. Somehow something had gotten inside my vest and it stung me. I have a strong tolerance for pain but this felt like someone had stuck a very sharp knife in me right at a rib and then jerked it back out. I instinctively reached to the spot and squished whatever it was but was never able to see it. Immediately it started to swell and turn red and felt like it was literally on fire and burning. I have never felt anything like it. I told my husband childbirth wasn’t as painful as that was. Once again, it’s just typical every day life; expect the unexpected and never get too comfortable because it can all change in an instant.

I am thankful that I have a God who loves me and takes care of me and a family that also loves me. I am thankful that I now have these journeys on my bike to help me to see more clearly. I am thankful for my husband who taught me to ride and has instilled that “protective” factor within me to be able to hold onto when I ride. I know there have been situations I would have handled differently without that in the back of my mind. Between the prayers I say every time before I leave my driveway on the bike and those still small voices in my head, I have such a peace when I ride that I cannot explain. I have respect for the bike, but there is no fear because I know who I belong to and that he watches over me.

1 Corinthians 15:55-57 (KJV)
O death, where is thy sting? O grave, where is thy victory?
The sting of death is sin; and the strength of sin is the law.
But thanks be to God, which giveth us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.