Yesterday my five year old granddaughter learned to ride her bicycle without training wheels. My son sent me a video of her just tooling around their driveway. It was amazing. She was so excited, the look of pure joy and pride was priceless.
It made me think back to when I first learned to ride a bike. It was my older cousin's bicycle and a little too big. I was actually about nine years old when I learned...The bike must have been giant, because I was about the same height I am now back then. It was a red Schwinn with a banana seat. This is before helmets and other protective gear were required...we just hopped on the bikes and rode--down hill--with no brakes... No one warned me about speed and velocity and wind. Incline, decline? Huh? My dad put me on the bike, told me to balance, held the back of the bike (with a cigarette in the other hand I am sure) and ran along side to get me started, then the next thing I knew I was in the Easter basket shaped laurel bush at the end of the block. I wasn't hurt, I got back on the bike and did it again, and got to be quite the good rider of bicyclces. I expect that the Grand baby will do the same thing. She ran right into a tree today, fell down multiple times, quite gracefully I might add (I'm thinking the ice skating lessons really paid off. She learned how to 'fall' well) We are working on that steering piece. I did make sure she had her helmet on, and trust me, as soon as I get a chance, she will sport knee and elbow pads. I explained declines, inclines and why they are not hills. We discussed the wind too...Thank goodness she's a smart kid. She got it.
Her learning to ride and my reminiscing about the same, got me thinking about how sometimes life is like learning to ride a bike. Sometimes someone has to hold your hand, talking to you and getting you started. After awhile, you don't even realize that they aren't holding it anymore, you just take off and go, turn around to look and say "Look! I'm doing it!"...only to run into a tree. It's okay, though. You get up, dust off and try it again.
The pride and joy of knowing that you have learned or overcome something and the confidence and tenacity to get back up and try, try again is priceles and I am convinced that the earlier one learns that the better off the will be.
