Kind of an odd concept going into fog for the summer and coming out in autumn. But looking back on that last post from the coast, the fog gave a good cover to break away from the drudgery that blogging had become. Coming up with regular posts that had even a nominal amount of interest was a chore. Consequently, I gave myself a self-imposed 3 month sabbatical from blogging. It wasn't planned to be three months it just turned out that way. More on that in a minute.
The situation had gotten to the point where I couldn't see the forest for the trees. I was focusing too much on trying to come up with interesting content while my heart wasn't in it. I was letting the blog run my life instead of vice versa. The time off was a good way to stop and look at the bigger picture.
The beemer and I have been racking up the miles this summer. One of the great benefits of riding is meeting interesting people. If I can humbly say this, the beemer seems to be a magnet that draws people of all ages. From little kids holding on to their mother's hand to elderly ladies, people seem to gravitate to it and conversations start quickly and happen almost daily.
A recent example happened at the
Vista House overlooking the Columbia Gorge. I stopped there week before last to snap some photos. As I was getting ready to leave, a gentleman pulled into the parking lot on a Harley. We started making small talk about motorcycles then he mentioned that he just needed to get out and go for a ride. He said that ten days ago he received some bad news. He's been diagnosed with cancer of the pancreas. The conversation took a different tone so I asked him if he had a religious background. He perked up and said yes he's a Christian. He said that his future is secure and he knows where he's going when he dies. It was really great to hear him confidently talk about his faith and how people are seriously listening to what he has to say. It was obvious that his faith has given him strength in spite of facing the unknown with cancer.
This brings me to the bigger picture. I'd like to invite you to stick with me as we go on a ride. I can't help but talk about my faith in God and more specifically in Jesus. He has changed my life over the last 9 years and I have to tell others of His love and grace and mercy. If you had a cure for cancer would you talk about it or keep it to yourself? If you knew of the only exit out of a burning building would you "respect the rights of others" and not say anything?
Some might say, "Why talk about faith, this is a motorcycle blog?" I can't suppress it any longer. On this blog I've kept it bottled up so as not to offend anyone but I have to be true to the title and post on what I think about. More importantly I want to be true to God.
We all know that riding a two wheeler is dangerous. We also know that at any moment we could leave this life. Let's face it, there's a one-to-one relationship between people and death. No one gets out of this life alive. I know this is a negative subject but what if it's true that what we believe in this life determines where we go in the next life. We plan for vacations and retirement, I'm thinking maybe we should look at what's next after this.
I've developed an online relationship with many of you over the past year and as a result I care about you. And even though I've been lurking for a few months I've still been following your blogs. I want to bring this blog back up and share my thoughts along with motorcycle travels. The content here is not intended to be offensive. Hopefully it will be a thought provoking journey. I hope you find it both interesting and challenging.
I thought I would post a straight on photo instead of the usual reflection shot. This was yesterday afternoon at
Bald Peak State Park. This area is excellent for riding the twisties and seeing beautiful scenery. The trouble is you can't do both at the same time.
By the way, in case you're wondering why I'm wearing a baseball cap it's because I'm follicly challenged. Actually I don't want the glare off my forehead to bring down a satellite somewhere.
God's speed.
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