The Bike

Ya know, some things are pretty much true, no matter what.

Well, it was the day that my baby girl (of seven years) decided that she would learn to ride her bike once and for all. No more training wheels.  Was it fun? Um, I would say not! She fussed and moaned and at one point early on in this little life adventure she actually threw herself onto the ground in a fake crash in an attempt to receive the attention she was sure she deserved, but certainly was not receiving on any scale large enough to be remotely acceptable to her.

After a much-needed trip home from the park and a lengthy breathing session for her dad and me, we decided to return back to the park for another go at it, and wow, she could ride!  She could not steer worth a damn, but that was O.K. As long as she stayed on a straight shot path she was good.

So why could she not maneuver a curve? Well, I will tell you. I realized after watching and watching that when an obstacle appeared in her path she would stare fixedly not at where she wanted to go, but exactly the opposite. She would focus on the most dreaded possible outcome. For example, in swooping down the big trail in this beautifully master-planned park her focus would suddenly shift from wheee…, flying down the hill with the wind in my hair, to oh my gosh that is the biggest trash can that I have ever seen in my life. I hope I don’t hit it. It’s coming right at me ….OOOOUUUUCH! The result? Tears and agony and her first real bike tumble ever. A painful lesson repeated several times before mastered. Now she is a pro. 

  

I did not realize until much later what a great life lesson this was. That we must focus on where we want to go, not on the obstacle in our way.  Not just when riding a bike, but always. If we can accomplish this, and believe me, I am not saying it is always easy, but if we stay focused, even the biggest obstacle can be circumvented and our desired goal snatched for our very own keeping.  And I do believe that this is pretty much true no matter what.