So many of you have been asking about my trip and when I was going to post about it. The truth is I got back last Friday (a day later than I intended, but that’s a story for later) and it has taken me this long just to process all the things that happened. They say hindsight is 20/20, and as I continue to reflect on my trip, in hindsight I am in awe. One saying that has come to be my favorite just because I see it so much in my life is “God did for me what I could not (or sometimes in my case would not) do for myself”. And this trip is no exception.

I have to say the trip getting there could not have been more perfect. The weather was perfect, no hitches, close calls—nothing. Just good ole’ riding time. The worst problem I had going was about an hour in start/stop traffic between Tomball and Humble. The trip getting home, however, could not have been more eventful.

However, in life’s grand form, it was the return trip from which I learned the most. It was a barometer of how much progress I have made in handling unplanned challenges—one of life’s gentle reminders that you can plan, but you can’t plan the results. It was an experience that, first hand, taught me that life’s challenges really are gifts in ugly wrapping paper. It was the realization that what happens to me is not always about me. In fact, most of the time, it isn’t about me. If only we could get a glimpse of the front side—the pretty side of our life’s tapestry—we would see that everything really does happen for a reason. But most of the time, our view is of the back, where the threads are messy, tangled and knotted together.

And so it is, that living life on life’s terms requires a certain amount of faith. Faith that we are always exactly where we are supposed to be, even if we don’t like where that is. And trust—trust that we have all the tools we need to deal with the situation at hand, even if we think we don’t. And open-mindedness—an open mind to clear the forest, so we can see the trees. So we can see the opportunity in what is going on around us, what is happening to us. A great friend of mine always says God gives her brilliant opportunities disguised as impossible situations. Well, that makes two of us!

So in an unexpected way, I have come to realize that it was the return trip that strengthened my faith. My faith in the goodness of life. That there really are decent people out there. Faith that no matter what comes my way, I am equipped to deal with it. And faith that life really does have sweetness to offer, not just problems.

I hope you enjoy my story! Check back later in the week for Life Parallels posts. That’s a new category we created for posts that have to do with our discoveries about how motorcycling relates to life.

The Trip

Pic Place