Pedals

I learned two great lessons yesterday as I tried to get some exercise on my bike: never leave your cell phone at home and always make sure your equipment is ready. I had planned to burn some calories with a bike ride late yesterday afternoon. I got my iPod, jumped on my bike and took off.

I was getting into it. My heart was starting to pump, a sweat was breaking out, and Daughtery was thumping through my ears. A side note: “Crashed” may not be the song of choice when riding on a busy street!! About two miles into my ride something suddenly was not right. My left foot suddenly was doing its own thing. In order for a bike to work properly, both feet need to move in the same direction. I thought I had broken my chain, but the pedal on the left side had fallen off my bike. Okay, no big deal. Find the pedal, screw it in, and get going again. Wrong!!

I found the pedal, but the threads wouldn’t work. I could not screw the pedal back onto the extension to make it work. This was no good. I had a choice: walk the bike home two miles or try to ride it home two miles. Of course, I chose foolishly. Do you know how hard it is to ride a bike with one pedal? I thought I may be like a one legged duck who swims in circles. Instead I found out I was one giant cramp in my left leg as I tried to ride my bike home.

I have thought about the spiritual implications of this incident. Maybe the lesson is to prepare before you begin. Maybe the lesson is to fight through any difficulty. Maybe the lesson is that foolish people do foolish things and have to deal with the consequences.

For me, the most important lesson I can come up with is the wheels (or pedals) sometimes come off in life. We are headed one direction and suddenly there is a major issue. The question then becomes how we deal with it. There are all kinds of great quotes to use here: “When the going gets tough the tough get going.” “No pain no gain.” “Never quit fighting until the fight is done.”

I don’t know if there are any great lessons here. I simply know that the unexpected happens and we have no choice but to deal with it. So today, I will go home, fix my bike, crank some music and pedal!!!