Biking, Pace, and Goodbyes

I recently had a conversation with a visiting friend who was observing the bikers in our city. He noticed that everyone bikes at a leisurely pace... that even the people with the battery-powered electric bikes go at a leisurely pace (usually even slower than if they pedaled). He was right on. In fact, there was only one person I noticed who often bikes down the street at a fast pace, pedaling furiously and passing up all of the others. It was me.

This observations spoke volumes to me about the contrast between the pace of life to which I'm accustomed and the pace of life to which I'm adjusting. Here's my standard train of thought: the faster I pedal, the faster I get there; the faster I get there, the faster I'll be done doing whatever I'm doing there; the faster I'm done, the faster I can move on to do something else; the faster I can move on, the more I can do; the more I can do, the more I am worth. But that last one... the main driver for my drivenness... is a lie.

So, I'm trying to learn to pedal slower. Not just on my bike... but in life. To spend time with and enjoy the people around me. To be less concerned with how productive I am and more concerned with how loving I am. To place a higher value on being encouraging than on being efficient.

"Pedal faster!" was my friend's final words to me (jokingly) just before he left town last week.

Another life lesson I learned today... if there is the option to have your bike watched by an attendant, take that option. Sure, it costs a little bit of money (the equivalent of about 10 cents), and you may need to park underground and then walk back up a ramp. But... it's better than getting your bike stolen. Which... is what happened to me today.

I think all of us who live here are somewhat emotionally prepared to have our bikes stolen maybe once or twice a year (at least). So, I paid my dues today. Tomorrow, I will buy another (inexpensive) bike and with a (better quality) lock.

Goodbye, Yoshi. You were good to me.