Get A Bicycle ...

"Get a bicycle. You will certainly not regret it, if you live." Mark Twain

In my new life, I have learned to set fitness goals. One of them was to ride a bike. I had a rocky start riding the bike in the gym, but now I am riding 30-45 minutes a day, 6 days a week (plus my weight training). My next huge goal was to ride a real bike - outside and everything - and to go on a family bike ride. Since I started on this path, I feel a lot of it has been in a holding pattern. There are so many things that I want to do, but I need to lose weight before I can accomplish them. But I wanted to ride a bike, not in a few months, but right now.

I knew that I would need a recumbent bike, due to an old leg injury. We started looking for one and quickly found that they started at over $1000. So, we went to plan B, AKA eBay. We found two that were up for bid by the same person, but we had a very small budget. So without God's help, I knew I would not be getting a bike. But, you know that I would not be writing this blog post if my bid had not won. So, let's recap - I wanted a very expensive, special bike, we had very little money, and it looked impossible. But with God, all things are possible and we won the bid at a great price, and got the bike. A happy ending, right?

No. The minute we won the bid, the realization set in - now I have to learn to ride a bike! Me, a rollie-pollie, uncoordinated person who hadn't ridden a bike in 40 years; what had I done? And of course, I had asked all my friends to pray that I would get this bike. They all knew I won the bid, so how would I get out of this one?

Well, it took a couple weeks to get the bike shipped, then we took it to get tuned up at a bike shop. So, finally the day came, and I had to actually ride my God given gift of a bike. I could not sleep the night before. I was so scared I wouldn't be able to do it. I even looked around online to see if they made training wheels for adult bikes. But, I knew God was with me every step of this path, so I took a "pedal of faith" and went for a ride. My husband went with me to an empty parking lot, early in the morning. I didn't want anyone to see me. Heck, I didn't even want to see myself doing this. I told him, "Whatever you do, don't let go of me." I know that's how he taught my two daughters to ride their bikes, but this was me.

So, with my heart racing, I started pedaling saying, "Don't let go of me!" I looked over, and my husband was jogging right next to me, not holding on. I realized I was riding the bike all by myself. What a feeling to accomplish a huge goal that I could not have done without God's strength. The next day, we went on our first family bike ride. It was somewhat traumatic as there were a lot of people riding on the trail so I was very nervous. I even got to take my first "wipe out." We had a great time, and I know it will only be the first of many family bike rides to come.

One thing I have learned on this path is you have to keep moving your goals once you meet them. So, my new goal is to ride 4 miles outside and work my way to 10 miles. My ultimate goal is to ride in a 50 mile bike race. I don't know how long it will take, but I know that I will keep working on these goals until I meet them.

So, there you go. Just as Mark Twain said, "Get a bicycle." I haven't regretted it (yet), and I'm still alive and pedaling down my path.

Go Kiss A Deer

I experienced a new part of my path last week while on vacation with my family. This was the first time where eating healthy and exercising actually matter to me. Well, needless to say, I was filled with much anxiety before we left because I was worrying about staying on my healthy eating plan and if I would have time to work out. To be perfectly honest with you, I really do not enjoy the outdoors that much and we were going to a cabin in the woods so that alone caused me to have much concern. Every time I have a break in my routine, I worry if I will ever get back on my path.

I was listening to a song while driving up to the cabin. I heard this song many times, but there was one line in it I heard for the first time. It was very simple but I think it was what God was trying to tell me, all through this vacation. The line says, "So look up and see love. Let grace be enough." It was as if God was speaking directly to me, saying that His grace is enough and that He loves me and I don't need to let the worries choke out the joy of this time with my family. There were many times that I would become anxious again, like when we arrived at the cabin and I saw two flights of stairs just to get in the front door. But I just looked up and saw love, and let grace be enough. Believe it or not, the stairs were no problem at all which was a good thing, because when I got in the cabin, there was another flight of stairs up to the loft. I guess all that cardio was paying off.

There were so many things on this trip that I was able to do with my family for the first time. We rode a steam engine train with an outside car that we all stood in and watched God's beautiful creation pass by. I was standing for more than an hour in the outside car with my daughters, which would have been impossible just a year ago. Last year I was only able to stand five or ten minutes at the time due to the pain in my leg and my lack of fitness. That was when God revealed to me the whole reason I am on this path - to take my life back and enjoy every minute of it. This vacation was not a snare to trap me to fall of my path, but a blessing to show me how far I have come, and what I have to look forward to with my family.

That's exactly what I did when I went for hikes, swimming in the Hot Springs, making s'mores over a campfire (yes the fire was outside). We saw so much wonderful wildlife. One the most fun things is that the deer were so friendly, they would come right up to you allow you to feed them. One actually kissed me when I bent down to feed him a cookie (no, it was not my cookie it was my husband's cookie - I guess now it is the deer's cookie). It was one of the most active vacations that we have ever had. My husband and my children have always been active, but I was never able to join in. But this time was different. It was truly a wonderful time. I cannot tell you that I now love the outdoors, but I will go there any time to spend time with my family. And of course with God's amazing blessings, when I got home from our vacation, after not being able to exercise regularly or eat as healthy as I would of liked, I weighed in and had lost 5 pounds (my husband gained 2 ha, ha, ha). Again it was God saying to me, "...look up and see love, let grace be enough." Jesus came so that we could have life and have it more abundantly, and it is our job to find the path He has given us and walk forward, living our lives.

So this week, I want you to look up and see love, and let grace be enough. And while you're at it, go kiss a deer.

Stay the Path