Excerpt from Chapter 1: Down Unknown Roads
If the first time I ever climbed on the back of a motorcycle felt like being born again, then the first time I ever climbed onto my very own motorcycle, settling into the seat and feeling instantly bonded, instantly unchained, felt like meeting my maker.
It felt like home.
There is something incredibly spiritual about riding a motorcycle- a contentment I have never known, a passion I have never felt so strongly, so quickly, so deeply, a freedom I have never experienced.
There is no yesterday on the road, and no tomorrow either, only the winding road ahead, the sun on your shoulders, the wind in your hair, and the perfectness of each and every solitary moment- a feeling of total and complete presence.
The roar of the engine beneath you drowns out the world, yet there you are seeing it- all of it- for the first time in glorious technicolor all around you, like a child taking its first steps or a blind man getting his sight back, beckoning you to grab life up with a ferocity and an intensity that can only lend itself to truly living a free life.
It tests your strength, your will power, your flexibility, your adaptability, your perseverance, and, most of all, your ability to love, wholly and deeply and unconditionally.
It is a brotherhood and sisterhood, bonding you instantly to those that also dare to reach out and touch all these things at the depths of their souls as well, in spite of their own fear, their hesitation, and their shortcomings.
The love it filled me with grabbed ahold of my failing and struggling heart and shocked me back to life again.
Those early miles when I was still learning saw me holding on tight and then letting loose more than a few times, clenching my fists and jaw in fear then laughing out loud in joy. They saw me deeply struggling to understand many of the more counterintuitive aspects of steering and riding a bike in general and then breaking through to a greater understanding of the entire process and experience.
I was sunburned, rained on, windblown, and covered in dirt and bugs.
Mostly, I learned I was FAR from being where I wanted to be as a rider, but I was also pretty fucking decent at it. I learned I should never stop learning from riding, and even after 100, or 1,000, or 10,000 miles, if I’m still looking forward to another 10,000 miles, then I should keep pursuing it.
Life leads us down many unpredictable, harrowing, and challenging roads. It causes us to question everything we ever thought to be true. We bend, we mold, we change, we settle, and then, once more, are forced to question those new beliefs as well, over and over and over again until uncertainty occupies more of our thoughts than certainty. I think of that old saying, “The more I see, the less I know.”
We’re faced with tight corners, blind spots, construction, wind, rain, thunder, lightning, and nasty conditions which make travel difficult for the already weary and winded, the sick and the suffering. It’s painful to admit sometimes that these realities are much more common than the sunny skies and easy curves we constantly seek.
And yet, because we believe them to be there- we catch glimpses of them in smiles from strangers and the laugh of a child and the unprompted kindness of others- we keep seeking them. But, how do we actually know for sure that if we keep seeking them that we are sure to find them? Will we ever find the answers we need or is it just hope that these glimpses aren’t empty promises that pushes us onward on a never-ending quest to find happiness against all odds and adversity?
The thought that we will undoubtedly fail at achieving this goal will cause most to cave and forget to try without even giving it a second thought. And yet, those brave souls who dare a second thought, we seek even fleeting, bittersweet, and sacred moments over failure, and we hear a voice that beckons us on. We see the road signs laid out ahead of us. “One step at a time, slowly if you have to. But don’t stop. Don’t cave under the weight. Happiness ahead.”
And, so, we trudge ahead, unwavering, hopeful that this new, unpredictable, harrowing, and challenging road will be the one to finally lead us home to that place from which we came from to rest at last among the stars, happy and contented once and for all.
