I had a secret for a long time.
I rarely told anyone it, but naturally I eventually shared my secret with Afton.
I did not know how to ride a bike
I remember lots of attempts to try and learn- from parents, siblings, friends.
But never with any real results.
I even have a memory as a 5 year old falling over on a TRICYCLE.
When Afton & I got married, she made it clear to me that she had the intention of teaching me how to
ride a bike so we could enjoy the activity throughout our lives. I thought little of this, only because I
had been through so many friends over the years who stated the same thing and nothing
ever came of it (though, that's mostly because of my stubbornness).
Then one morning- I found myself in the back parking lot of Westwood High School with my butt
on a bike seat. I hate to admit this, but it really was one of the most frustrating experiences for me. I even told
Afton that day- I'm not good at continuing to try stuff that I'm not good at. I tend to just stick with what I'm good at
and forget about anything else. So the need to continue pursuing this with so much struggle- it was hard for me.
That probably sounds dumb, but it's the truth.
We spent about an hour and a half in the hot summer heat working on it that day.
Then another day. And another, and another.
Till one night I asked Afton
"Would you like to go for a nice bike ride around our neighborhood?"
It was hard and pretty unpleasant for a while. But I finally got the payoff-
a nice sunset ride around downtown Mesa neighborhoods with my best friend.
Guys.
I can ride a bike now.
I did not know how to ride a bike
I remember lots of attempts to try and learn- from parents, siblings, friends.
But never with any real results.
I even have a memory as a 5 year old falling over on a TRICYCLE.
When Afton & I got married, she made it clear to me that she had the intention of teaching me how to
ride a bike so we could enjoy the activity throughout our lives. I thought little of this, only because I
had been through so many friends over the years who stated the same thing and nothing
ever came of it (though, that's mostly because of my stubbornness).
Then one morning- I found myself in the back parking lot of Westwood High School with my butt
on a bike seat. I hate to admit this, but it really was one of the most frustrating experiences for me. I even told
Afton that day- I'm not good at continuing to try stuff that I'm not good at. I tend to just stick with what I'm good at
and forget about anything else. So the need to continue pursuing this with so much struggle- it was hard for me.
That probably sounds dumb, but it's the truth.
We spent about an hour and a half in the hot summer heat working on it that day.
Then another day. And another, and another.
Till one night I asked Afton
"Would you like to go for a nice bike ride around our neighborhood?"
It was hard and pretty unpleasant for a while. But I finally got the payoff-
a nice sunset ride around downtown Mesa neighborhoods with my best friend.
Guys.
I can ride a bike now.
There's The Rub.
2 comments:
I love this! I don't like to persist in things I'm not good at, either. Like basketball. And any kind of game I don't win or get close to winning on my first try. I'd rather just do things I'm good at. haha
I know that it was probably about six months after I learned to ride a bike that I learned how to make a bike sound like a motorcycle by attaching a baseball card to the frame in such a way that the card was loudly flicked by the passing of each subsequent spoke. Point being, if your bike-related progress somewhat approximates my own, then in a few months you are in for some real fun.
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