Summer In the City

Summer Night
Originally uploaded by alex.dorand.

The thermometer read 102 F when I left work today. I was worried that I was destined to spend a hot night in my city flat. I

nstead two nice things happend: first, dear friends called and invited me to dine and swim at their suburban home. Second, when I returned to the City I found such laughter and happiness in the streets that the stickiness of the heat evaporated.

Downtown is alive this night. Couples young and old are strolling, hand in hand. Music seeps from doorways. Laughter is ubiquitous tonight.

I might begin to like this urban living thing. As Tony Bennett says, "Out of the Tree of Life I Just Picked Me a Plum."

A SURPRISE SOJOURN

Puffin Sunrise
Originally uploaded by abstract_effects.

I enjoyed an unplanned ride to the coast for dinner with my cousin this evening. By 6 pm, when I was able to motor, the late day sun still burned hot and bright, and a large rising moon pulled me east for an hour's cruise to the Atlantic shore.

The ocean was unusually calm, almost still. Tiny waves, too small for even a squirrel to surf, lapped lazily onto the sandy beach. They made no sound. Gulls darted here and there.

I pulled into the parking lot at Ron's Landing. A large sign said "Valet Parking Only," but motorcycles are immune from such things. "Park your bike wherever you like," said the friendly young man in the white valet uniform. "Thank you," I replied.

Dennis soon arrived on his Harley. We dined upstairs in the perfectly air conditioned lounge where we spoke with a number of the diners, each with a different story to tell. A fellow from Alabama made us laugh when he chided the bartender by telling her that she "was as crazy as a lab rat." I whispered to Dennis, "I always thought it was the lab technicians that were crazy, not the rats."

By 8 dinner was done and it was time for a gentle sunset ride home. Daylight faded to a gloaming in the west and my beautiful moon was at my side.

She stayed with me all the way home. Thank you Moon for being there for me.

LIFE IS FOR LIVING

table for 2
Originally uploaded by Pete the painter.

Night and day repeat as if an endless dance of time and light. But they are not endless. We know that.

Each sunset caps an amazing day that soon melds to night. Each night brings sleep and dreams that prepare us for the dawn. All is as it should be.

Yet we so often fail to appreciate each day's gift.

It may be that we are distracted by work or poor health. It may be that we are forgetful of our bounty through the jealousy of comparison with others' bounties. Whatever the distraction we are the poorer for it.

Let it go!

Look at the rain and embrace it. Ride in the rain and embrace it. Sure enough a rainbow will appear and we will be reminded of how life is like Sangria: a swirling mix of fruit and wine, of sweet and bitter, of light and dark, of sharp and smooth.

Life is for living. Drink it up.

Misty Mountain Roads

Misty Road
Originally uploaded by CaptPiper.

The morning rainstorm ended as abruptly as it began the other day. I was cruising in The Adirondacks. The air warmed as soon as the rains departed.

The road was warmer still. The damp macadam brewed an earie mist that rose into the air in swirls. The entire scene became dreamlike in a sense.

I slowed appreciably as visibility decreased: deer were about, so a more patient pace was wise.

There is magic in mysty roads. There are hearts hidden there. There is beauty clouded by mystery. I shall ride such mysts again I hope.

SERENE Stillness

Bolsena
Originally uploaded by Roarsthelion.

Daylight awakens upon quiet lake waters. The coolness of the air refreshes our souls.

The serenity of softly diffused light upon the smooth, glasslike watery canvass reminds us why we are called to such places.

We are called from deep within our souls. Much as a wild Loon beckons its lover and chicks home with tender callings, the peaceful lakes whisper sweetly to us in our dreams until we journey back to their shores.

Sometimes You Just Have to Go

R399
Originally uploaded by Will Design Works.

Sometimes the best way to figure out where you're going in life is to step off the train you're on and take a good long motorcycle ride. It's amazing how a few tankfulls of gas and a clear mountain road can clear the mind.

IN THE MIST

No One Sees You
Originally uploaded by _marmota.

The morning flowered slowly, softly, damply.

A sea fog had rolled onshore. The birds, but for two romanticly inclined morning doves, were unusually silent.

My duties today required that I ride away from the coast. Rain was coming soon so I hurried a bit more than usual for an otherwise still Sunday morn.

I soon found the rain.

A quick stop allowed me to don the rain suit. The rest of the ride moved from rain to fog and back again. Yet a feeling of total peace engulfed my soul as I zoomed along atop the motorcycle. It was just quintessentially peaceful.

I do not mind riding in the rain --high winds, yes, but not simple rain. In rain we find ourselves deeply sure that we know most things important.

There is always, however, that one special dream, that one particular harbor, our one fantastic goal that remains elusively just beyond our grasp. I want to embrace that dream and make it no longer a dream but a reality. I shall ride until it happens.