DDT (12)
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Posts: 4113
Sometimes ya just gotta go...
Winter Springs, FL - Occasionally...
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« on: June 09, 2020, 06:09:50 PM » |
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What a difference a day can make, huh…?! One day heat and hard work in making our way west, then rain as a cold front plowed through, followed by cool, really nice temps and clear skies… a bit breezy, of course, but hey, it’s never absolutely perfect, right? Anyway, we’ll take it!!! We had made our way to Platte, SD, then got a room for two nights… Yep, we had good reason this time to believe the all-day-rain weather forecast, so… We took an extra day to rest-up and recover from the ride so far, and to do some much-needed laundry. Beyond that, our time would be spent watching the rain from inside our room and pursuing the mastery of laziness… We were already doing quite well at that, but a little more practice couldn’t hurt, we reasoned… As we had approached Platte, the sun was high in the heavens and nibling incessantly at our exposed flesh. Soon enough it would be chewing ravenously, but our prudent plan had allowed for this stop in time to save us from the worst of that. Leaving our last motel at 4:30am, just as we’d done on previous occasions, had enabled us to cover most of our distance-target for the day well before the heat had fully set-in and gotten really serious! We could get used to this! And now the ‘work’ was done… The hard part was behind us until we would make the turn and head for the barn… Tomorrow and thereafter for the next week or so, we’ll be facing high daily temps in the mid-to-high 70*’s, and it appears we should be able to successfully dodge, through cautious route selection, what rain is predicted in the long range forecast. Dang, this is what we’d been earnestly longing for, so expectations about the near-term were high indeed! Long distance riding is not for the faint of heart, the weak or easily intimidated, nor any pansy-assed pleasure-only seekers. ‘Realists’ and ‘pragmatists’ seem to fair better over the long haul than do ‘idealists’. Nope, there is always some form or degree of hardship to overcome, adversity to endure, plus the ‘unexpected’ is without fail lurking out there somewhere ready to pounce when we least expect it. Personally, in a weird sort of way I find those unpleasantries to be part of the joy of serious trekking. I know it sounds strange, but in coping with all of those things, a sense of pride and feelings of accomplishment also accompany those situations, and there is surprising personal reward in that… Of course, those boo-boos always look better in the rearview mirror, especially during the re-telling of the stories to buds in the presence of ubiquitous libation, than they do in front of us! Not unlike life itself, major trekking has its ups and downs, good and not-so-good aspects. Indeed, long distance riding is itself a suitable metaphor for life’s journey generally. In learning to take things as they come, to deal with setbacks and tragedy, and to overcome obstacles, we find our way to learn and to grow… and eventually to flourish and prosper. By minimizing our exposure to challenge, we deny ourselves the opportunity to more fully appreciate our blessings, because real contrast will be missing from our perspective… right along with the sense of accomplishment not felt. Trekking, at least for this ardent practitioner, also allows vast quantities of opportunity for thought. One such opportunity presented itself recently, and… I pondered upon its subject for quite a spell… “Were Adam and Eve strict vegetarians?” Were animals actually allowed to be ‘harvested’ by the ‘first’ couple? And if not, could ‘The Garden of Eden’ truly be considered paradise if no bacon was available? And another thing… Following the ‘first’ couple’s yielding to temptation and subsequent banishment from the Garden, were government, taxes, and debt part of the punishment to be visited upon all of their progeny forever more? If so, then their sin was truly great indeed! More imponderables on a long list of unanswered questions that will haunt me to the grave, I reckon… So, the laundry is done, my story update is written, and… I think I’ll take a nap now… I am just so proud to be here!!! DDT
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