Bicycles have been on my mind a bit lately. It is summer after all.

Last summer, I didn’t ride at all, since I was already 5 months pregnant at the beginning of summer. It just didn’t seem very appealing. But the summers before that, I was nannying and we biked a lot. I’ve been having a good time the last few weeks biking and pulling Connor in the trailer.

But a bike has struck me as a pretty good metaphor for lots of aspects of life. (And I’m sure I’m not the first person to realize this.)

So, in no particular order, here are my musings on bicycles and life:

1. In order to ride a bike, you must stay balanced. And when you’re trying to move forward in your life, it’s important to keep physically/mentally/emotionally/spiritually balanced. {Remind me to tell you sometime about the three-legged table metaphor.}
2. The first few times I was out on my bike this year it felt way harder than I remembered. Way harder than I thought it should be. Turned out there was a lot of resistance from my rear axle and brakes.
   Life lesson: when things aren’t going as smoothly as you think they should, take a closer look. Sometimes you can figure it out yourself, but sometimes this means talking to an expert.
3. Biking in the city means you’re vulnerable. But being vulnerable can be a pretty good experience, don’t be too cautious.
4. When we bike in groups, we always designate an “ass-man.” Nobody gets behind the ass-man, whose job is to watch everyone’s ass. Look out for each other, let other people set the pace sometimes, and make sure no one gets stuck always being the ass-man.
5. This one is far more specific, and popped up in my Facebook memories recently:
   I have a very specific memory of a youth group biking trip in Itasca State Park, MN (side note, if you’ve never been, check it out: headwaters of the mighty Mississippi River and fabulous forest). I recall watching two of our leaders make steady progress up one of the steepest hills on the trail, pedaling together, and the husband had his hand on his wife’s back, pushing her the last bit of the hill.
   That’s always stuck with me as a vivid example of life in general, but married life especially. Sometimes we’re confronting an especially steep hill. Stopping won’t get you anywhere, you have to keep pedaling. But you’re more likely to succeed if you’re not alone. Sometimes you’re the pusher, sometimes the pushee, but supporting each other is something we humans need to do more often.

I’m sure there are more bike metaphors out there, and I’d love to hear it if you think of any.

And if you haven’t yet, get out there while it’s still summer. They say you never forget how to ride a bike. 🙂