I went biking yesterday with my daughter… this time, we went 17 miles on the Cannon Valley Trail, from Red Wing to Welch and back. This is a big jump for her, as our previous stint was just 5 miles. She’s still recovering from her second Scoliosis surgery — still wearing her back brace — so she’s not in very good shape. But her recumbent (a Rans Rocket) makes a huge difference in her comfort so she’s eager to ride longer distances and improve her endurance and strength.
We had such a good time together – a real memory maker for both of us. But what’s interesting to me is that it happened because I took an SOS walk.
When I woke up Sunday morning, I began struggling mentally about how to spend the day. Our motorcycle trials club had an event so I was thinking I’d go ride since I’ve only ridden one event this year. Or I could borrow my friend’s Beemer and scoot about the countryside by myself. Or maybe Robbie would want to rent a tandem recumbent, since we’ve talked about the possibility of buying one someday. Or I could just spend the day around the house, catching up on my reading, and then play some racquetball. I kept weighing the pros and cons of all these and couldn’t decide.
So I just decided to go for a walk in the Carleton Arb to see what would come to me. And what came to me after walking for about a half hour was going for a bike ride with my wife and daughter, but if my wife didn’t want to go, then I’d see if my daughter would go. Neither of them are big on physical exercise, and neither are inclined to go outside when the weather is nasty. So I’ve learn to adjust my expectations… just because I have what seems to be a good idea, doesn’t mean they’ll think so, and that in turn doesn’t mean that I need to be disappointed and bummed out.
I’ve done this a number of times in the past and discovered that by just taking some time to be quiet and put myself in a receptive frame of mind, a solution emerges. Every time. And many times, it’s one that I’d not even considered.
I call this “tuning in.” Is this a form of prayer?