Easter Sunday Ride
You may not think it makes sense to combine a church service and a bike ride in one post, however as I drone on, I think you will see the connections (or maybe not :-). Yesterday, my wife and I went to a Easter Sunday service. During the service, two themes stood out to me: a) Forgiveness and b) Being Empty versus Being Full. A few hours later, I rode up Highway 1 to Ano Nuevo State Park and back. I spent much of the ride thinking about these two themes.
One of the Assistant Ministers discussed Forgiveness. She pointed out how important this topic is. Like it or not, when we hold anger and frustration towards others, we are the ones that get hurt the most. [Fast forward to my bike ride.] As I was riding, I realized that I feel anger and frustration against some of the people who made the decision to close my workplace. I do not think these people are actually "bad people", I just have trouble with some of their actions and decisions. Yet, it is clear that my anger hurts me more than them. I know that I would be happier if I could find a way to forgive these people.
[Rewind back to the Church Service.] Often, a member of the church will lead a portion of the service. Yesterday, a woman talked about being empty versus full. She pointed out that everyone would choose to be full and would never try to empty out some of their fullness. Yet, life will often empty us whether we like it or not. However this process can be good for us. We have the opportunity to re-fill ourselves. And we often end up in a better place after re-filling. A number of years ago, she lost her mother during Easter. It was a great loss for her and it took her awhile to re-fill. She ended up focussing on improving her relationship with her daughter and others close to her. The loss of her mother was painful and she still feels the loss, however her relationships with others have improved and she is in a better place because of it. I was very touched by her story.
[Fast forward to bike ride.] The route was the same as a previous trip, except I continued up Highway 1 from Swanton Road to Ano Nuevo State Park. It was about 6 more miles to make it a total of 45 miles and 2500 feet of climbing. Even though it was my hardest ride of the year, I felt pretty strong for most of the trip. I believe that it is entirely due to my focus. Often, I am thinking about the upcoming hills, or how far I have gone, or the wind I am riding into, or my aching legs and lungs. Instead, I focussed on the two topics above. I see this as a lesson on how to deal with emptiness. Instead of thinking about what I have lost, I need to concentrate on how I want to re-fill myself. There will still be pain, however I believe that it will make the process of re-filling less painful.
Here is a picture of Swanton Road. It may not come through, but it is a very nice road for bike riding. I always find it serene and peaceful.
This picture may not mean much to anyone else, however it is a very beautiful sight to me. It is the view as you get to the top of Swanton Hill! It means that I have conquered the hill once again.
This is the view from Greyhound Rock State Beach, where I took a break during the ride.
One of the Assistant Ministers discussed Forgiveness. She pointed out how important this topic is. Like it or not, when we hold anger and frustration towards others, we are the ones that get hurt the most. [Fast forward to my bike ride.] As I was riding, I realized that I feel anger and frustration against some of the people who made the decision to close my workplace. I do not think these people are actually "bad people", I just have trouble with some of their actions and decisions. Yet, it is clear that my anger hurts me more than them. I know that I would be happier if I could find a way to forgive these people.
[Rewind back to the Church Service.] Often, a member of the church will lead a portion of the service. Yesterday, a woman talked about being empty versus full. She pointed out that everyone would choose to be full and would never try to empty out some of their fullness. Yet, life will often empty us whether we like it or not. However this process can be good for us. We have the opportunity to re-fill ourselves. And we often end up in a better place after re-filling. A number of years ago, she lost her mother during Easter. It was a great loss for her and it took her awhile to re-fill. She ended up focussing on improving her relationship with her daughter and others close to her. The loss of her mother was painful and she still feels the loss, however her relationships with others have improved and she is in a better place because of it. I was very touched by her story.
[Fast forward to bike ride.] The route was the same as a previous trip, except I continued up Highway 1 from Swanton Road to Ano Nuevo State Park. It was about 6 more miles to make it a total of 45 miles and 2500 feet of climbing. Even though it was my hardest ride of the year, I felt pretty strong for most of the trip. I believe that it is entirely due to my focus. Often, I am thinking about the upcoming hills, or how far I have gone, or the wind I am riding into, or my aching legs and lungs. Instead, I focussed on the two topics above. I see this as a lesson on how to deal with emptiness. Instead of thinking about what I have lost, I need to concentrate on how I want to re-fill myself. There will still be pain, however I believe that it will make the process of re-filling less painful.
Here is a picture of Swanton Road. It may not come through, but it is a very nice road for bike riding. I always find it serene and peaceful.
This picture may not mean much to anyone else, however it is a very beautiful sight to me. It is the view as you get to the top of Swanton Hill! It means that I have conquered the hill once again.
This is the view from Greyhound Rock State Beach, where I took a break during the ride.
posted by Steve @ 6:09 PM
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