The Journey of a Thousand Miles

I've always liked the saying "The journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step." It's true. It's also true that the journey of a thousand miles by bicycle begins with a single revolution of the pedals. :) I recently experienced the joy of having ridden my first thousand miles on my new bicycle. As of Friday, June 11, 2010, my total mileage, since purchasing a bike on March 11, 2010 was 1,097.48. My weekly rides are now at 151.2 miles, so the next thousand miles should occur in half the time or less.

I am a sucker for stats. Results don't lie. I keep detailed stats on days I ride, mileage, routes, calories burned, total weight loss, etc. Shawn got me a handy little tool for that as well. I love my Garmin bike computer and all the detailed info it captures. I have now lost 30 lbs. over the last three months and met the halfway mark to my overall goal of losing 60 lbs. in six months. This reminds me how much I am looking forward to September; my goal deadline, our family trip to Hawaii, and re-inhabitance of the body I have missed through years of many back to back pregnancies.

Even better than the tangible rewards of health and fitness a thousand miles has offered, are the subtle changes in my mind and spirit since beginning the journey. While riding a couple of days ago, pushing uphill in strong wind, I realized how much I enjoyed it. I loved it even more than the downhill descent on the other side. I remember back to when I only summited a hill to have the downhill experience. Now, I choose the hills for the burn, exhilaration, and challenge of the hill; especially the strength it offers. I often find myself sprinting the ascent, standing up on the pedals, for added challenge. The downhill is just a brief rest from the burn, not the goal or the motivation.

My observation and awareness have increased. I've been rewarded with some beautiful and poignant moments through becoming more in tune with my surroundings. A few weeks ago, as I cycled past a cemetery, I became aware of an older gentleman kneeling on one knee, arms full of roses, leaning over the headstone of a loved one. He was completely unaware of me, swallowed up in grief. As our proximity narrowed, his whole upper body crumpled over, his frame hunched and sobbing. In that moment, as his heart broke and wept, mine did too. I sobbed and prayed for him and his loss for the next mile or two.

A couple of days ago, I passed twin girls who looked to be about eight or nine years old. They were walking on the sidewalk, backpacks on their backs. I remember thinking how sad it was that they looked to be in year round school on such a beautiful summer morning. They took their backpacks off and dropped them at their feet. In a face to face stance in the middle of the sidewalk, they bowed their heads, closed their eyes, and folded their arms, in an obvious prayer together. The moment was sublime. Though I do not know who they were or the reason for their prayer, I was touched to have witnessed it.

Recently it occurred to me that an hour and forty minutes a day on a bicycle, was the perfect time to listen to scripture; to make the best use of that meditation time. The good music I was previously listening to was just that, good, but a deeper appreciation for scripture and the inspiration provided by studying it, would be the best. Much inspiration has followed because of that decision to change and more focus my use of time. I can feel my spiritual strength increasing the same way my physical body has increased in strength.

Yesterday, I experienced an intense love for the beauty of the earth as I cycled through a rain shower. The sweet and pungent smell of wet earth, and the sensation of warm wind and cold rain, heightened my appreciation of the moment and put a huge smile on my face.

Cycling is a tool God is using to sharpen, deepen, and refine my purpose and commitment. I am a more devoted, useful, instrument in His hands because of it. My desire to serve, apply knowledge, live truth, and become more like Him continue to increase as well. I am daily reminded that mortality is brief, that every second counts, and that though life is meant to be enjoyable, it is also to be lived purposefully. I have much work to do before I sleep. I am reminded of the message of Robert Frost's timeless poem:

Stopping By Woods on a Snowy Evening
by Robert Frost

Whose woods these are I think I know.
His house is in the village, though;
He will not see me stopping here
To watch his woods fill up with snow.

My little horse must think it queer
To stop without a farmhouse near
Between the woods and frozen lake
The darkest evening of the year.

He gives his harness bells a shake
To ask if there's some mistake.
The only other sound's the sweep
Of easy wind and downy flake.

The woods are lovely, dark and deep,
But I have promises to keep,
And miles to go before I sleep,
And miles to go before I sleep.