Nostalgia

The weather is turning south and the roads were clear, so my biking obsession got the better of me.   I asked my five year old how the weather was as he had just come in and he said, "It rained.   Then it didn't.   Then it did.   Now it's done."   Okay.....good enough for me.    As it turned out it rained the whole ten miles and I got soaked to the gills but got the bike ride in.    The whole journey, complete with five deer jumping in front of me, had me mentally take a trip down memory lane.   I took several wilderness like trips as a youthling so all the rain and being stuck in it reminded me of the 50 mile canoe trip I took.   I have a sick love of a challenge.   We had many portages through rain and muck and I insisted on carrying the canoe across a muddy portage and one other hilarious journey for a mile with two packs on me, one in the front and one on the back.   A good friend and I got our shoes stuck in the mud and  somehow had to pull our shoes out with packs on  and feeling a lot like up-righted turtles.   I really had a sick love of the challenge.   Cross country, track, hiking mountains and running ridiculous amounts of miles daily.    

Nostalgic thinking led me to think of how I haven't given up that insanity and love of feeling strong and fit.   Nothing ever seems small with our family either, not the number of kids, our big old house which celebrates its 150th this year and all the challenges it has brought.   Then I was thinking how it makes perfect sense that my love of a challenge landed me a husband with extreme interests, endless energy, huge projects, excellence in engineering and a similar love of hiking, biking etc.   Nothing small.    Is it any surprise to me when I feel  that  release from conquering mountains.   Mowing 5 acres with a self-propelled mower walk behind, gardening and sweating, climbing dunes with the kids.    This has been the way of my life. 

So biking as hard as I can down the road for ten miles dodging ice and attempting to get up that next hill faster and easier than the last time.   Sometimes it is nice to make progress.   Sometimes it is nice to have less snow so you can bike like a nut in the rain and wind, get soaked to the gills and return to do the next thing at home.  It keeps my need of time alone and quiet and helps me face the challenges of the day.