All bikers are optimists.
We have to be.
The dangers of the road are something we have all faced firsthand, and most of us know at least one person whose life ended on a bike.
But that doesn’t stop us. We still need to live life on two wheels.
Riding a motorcycle somehow just makes anything seem possible. The road can lead anywhere. And wherever it ends, the journey always feels worthwhile. An accomplishment. An adventure. Even when it’s just a mundane market run.
This feeling has been a blessing to me the past few months. After twenty-five years of marriage, I decided on another path. While I know all my life lessons are on this new road I have chosen, recalibrating all your vitals to a new setting is… scary. Unfamiliar. Disconcerting.
But, all bikers are optimists. We have to be. And scary is something we get used to quickly.
So, my bike is my therapy. Every morning my ride to work isn’t the drudgery of a commute. It is wind on my face, the thrust of acceleration, and the rising feeling of possibility. Weaving through rush hour gridlocks is the literal, physical manifestation of me making my way through this new maze.
And it’s working. Each day is less scary. Every road is a new possibility.
I will be just fine.
*Today’s road leads to Thassos, Greece.