Enjoy the Ride

Last spring and summer, I spent a lot of time exploring Toronto on my bike. It was an exercise in health, awareness, and finding my peace. I was trying to navigate this beautiful thing called Life. I needed to get out and explore and wake up to the goodness that was all around me, and I did so on my bike.

Most days, I gravitated towards the Toronto Waterfront trail. Most days I rode past a man cycling along the trail. The man had a disability that prevented him from riding a standard bike. The bike supported his limited mobility. Based on what I could observe, he pedaled using his feet and that was the only part of his body that could move. The man moved at what I can best describe as a snail’s pace.

Every time I saw the man, I wondered who helped him get into the bike, who was waiting for him at the end of his journey, what was he thinking about as he peddled along the waterfront? I wondered how much mental and physical strength did it take for him to take on this journey? How long did it take him to get from point A to point B? Where was he at in his waterfront journey? How long had he been doing this exercise? Was he tired? Was he happy?

I witnessed this fierce human being take on a physical, mental and I believe, emotional journey along the waterfront. I have no idea who helped him, who was waiting for him at the end of the waterfront journey nor how he was feeling. I hope he had a supportive group of people who loved him and helped him along his journey. I hope he was happy. I hope he was tired, the good kind of tired. I hope he was enjoying the ride.

I am thankful that I physically crossed paths with this human being.

His presence along my waterfront journey reminded me that we are all trying to navigate this beautiful gift called Life. Every story is different and every journey has its own timeline. Try not to get caught up in how long something takes, rather get caught up in the process and the beautiful beings that make the journey possible.

“Just slow things down and it becomes more beautiful” -David Lynch

Originally published at https://www.linkedin.com.