The incident took less than 15 seconds from start to finish….
I took a long ride this Saturday, a loop through
Downtown. I rode from the house, east on
90, over to Tharpe St. and all the way to Monroe. From there I planned to ride south on Monroe
to Gaines, west to the stadium, and back out 20 to the house. I tried to ride every day during the long
spring and summer while I and many of my fellow teachers were stuck at home, and
except for a few days here and there, and those days it rained, I accomplished
that goal. I was actually able to
gradually work myself up week by week a mile at a time to a point where a 20+
mile ride is very do-able.
For you veteran riders out there please understand, the last
time I was on a bike I was dealing with long term chronic pain and ended my
last ride a year and a half ago on the side of the road, after only 5 miles, in
such severe pain that I was vomiting. So
now, when I’m on my bike riding again, I feel pretty good about myself. I feel accomplished again. With school back in play again I get to ride
once or twice a week so I try to make it a good one when I get the chance to
get out for a ride. One of the things I
like to do as I ride is to call out greetings to the people I pass along the
way. It makes me feel good when I get a
smile or a wave back in reply. It’s good
to share a smile with a stranger.
So there I was about halfway through the ride coming into
downtown Tallahassee. I was getting
stopped by lights and contending with traffic and distracted drivers, but
having a great ride. Up ahead, in front
of the Chain of Parks, I caught site of protestors… “This should be good,” I thought as I rode
closer. As I got closer I noticed that
there was more than “a” protest going on, there were what look like from a
distance a chain of protests, each with their own little cluster of people and
signs. Nothing in particular stood out
to me as I passed by the line of sign-bearers… until I notice him.
He stood with his own group of fellow protestors, I won’t
mention their name because it really isn’t any more or less important than the
name of any of the other groups out that morning. His skin glowed with the kind of ghostly hue
of one who might be venturing out into the daylight for the first time, on purpose, in months. He had a softness that hung about him which
spoke of a life totally unfamiliar with the concept of hard work. In his hands was a sign with the words, “WE
ARE RELENTLESS,” written out in uneven block letters. (I admit that I spell-checked it as I took in
the scene.) I started to giggle… “Relentless
about getting to the fridge.” At first
it was a private snigger, but then I began to giggle out loud, shaking my head
and smiling from ear to ear at the sight of this clueless little marshmallow with
the sign. As I passed the protestors I called
out a few greetings and salutations and I made a point of making eye-contact
with Mr. Relentless and giggled through a hearty, “have a GREAT day,” as I went
past him. “What a maroon,” my inner Bugs
Bunny said…
Again, the whole thing lasted 10 or 15 seconds, an almost
insignificant amount of time. As I rode
on, my giddiness changed to shame as I remembered the he too was created in God’s image.
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