Happy Holidays Edition 2011

So, once again time has flown.  Honestly, this entire year has been on speed. It seems like just a couple of weeks ago that I was out in Utah and that was actually a year and two months ago!  Some of the days have seemed eternally long, but the months flew past this year like one of those old cartoons where the wind blows the pages of the calendar away in quick succession and you can see the seasons rapidly changing out the window next to it.  So, what can you do?  My best answer is to hang on tight and try to enjoy the ride- even with the rain, snow, winds, pot-holed gravel roads, and crazy drivers that don’t even notice you’re on the road with them.


There is that song- Life is a Highway.  It really does seem like a highway a lot of the time.  Life, death, scenery passes. Mountains rise in front of us and miles of what we’ve already passed or accomplished lie behind us.  For those of us that like to ride, we crave the open road in front us, we relish the wind, the rain, the sleet, and the sun on our faces.  We enjoy the curvy, scenic roads the mountains in front of us provide, and we know that the quickest route is not always the best or most interesting path.  We don’t get lost, we take the scenic route.  We chose to enter life with our faces front, an extra inch of throttle roll at our wrists, and a silly grin on our faces expecting that the best, or at least expecting that something supremely interesting continues to lie in front of us pulling us ever forward.

Don’t get me wrong I love the holidays, it’s one of the best scenic stops of the year.  Our family gathers around, presents abound, and we reflect on our past year’s journey with one and other.  I decided to help the family reflect together by creating a family gift of a calendar.  Each family got their own page.  Kids get additional pages, parents, grandparents, and great-grandparents are all represented and we can see each other.  Even though some of us are thousands of miles apart, we can see each other and some of what we’ve been up to on our individual journeys over the last year or so.  The nieces and nephews grow up so fast.  It is also fun for them to see their parents, grandparents, and great-grandparents at their age, doing similar things. 

All of the journeys we take may not be the same.  Some journeys will be unusually short and some well-earned and long.  They won’t be without hardship and sometimes pain, but they will be filled with smiles, laughs, and accomplishments that only we can have and share.  Some roads will be the same, but the challenges and scenery will still differ.

Don’t forget to take time to reflect upon your journey and share it with others.  Don’t forget to share in other’s journeys and point them towards some of best rides.  Most of all don’t ever just leave each other behind.  The road can be a lonely place by yourself, but even a bad or not so scenic road is improved with good company.

May the pavement only kiss your tires, may the sun shine on your face, may the wind make smooth your way, and may all of your trips reinforce the beauty within and around you.  Happy Holidays!  And may many miles of great riding be ahead of you!