Being grateful in the moment for the things we have in that moment is kind of a big deal
By Sarah Hansing
Ahhhh!!!
You guys! You guys! YOU GUYS!!!!
IT RAINED!!!
Ok, I know I can’t be the only one that got unreasonably excited when I woke up in the middle of the night this past Sunday to the melodic thrum of rain on my window. I thought maybe it was a dream …
But Monday morning it was STILL RAINING!
I haven’t been that excited about rain since I lived in Southern California, truth be told. It was all I could do to not run outside and twirl around in those sweet drops of angel’s tears falling from the sky. … or at least to not do it for more than 3 … maybe 4 minutes tops.
It did strike me as kind of funny in a way, that I was so incredibly stoked to see what (prior to the horrible drought conditions) I had considered to be a bummer. A plan killer. A ride ruiner. A gloomy way to start a day.
Funny isn’t it? The whole “you don’t know what you’ve got til it’s gone” adage proves that those overused sayings are overused for a reason.
It’s something to keep in mind. Something to remind ourselves about.
Being grateful in the moment for the things we have in that moment is kind of a big deal.
Over the past week, I’ve had loads of conversations with the people I’ve been riding with. We chatted and pedaled and laughed and shared stories. Do you know what most of those stories centered around for ALL of us?
Nostalgia.
Stories about regular group rides that were done with people long ago, on trails that don’t exist anymore, on bikes long since sold, stolen, or turned from race-rockets into townie bikes.
Anecdotes about crashing on gnarly trails that were seen as mortal enemies … but are sort of missed now, because of that time we FINALLY cleared it and then moved on to bigger and better things.
It’s all a good reminder to stay as much in the moment as we possibly can. Because “now” turns into “then” WAY faster than we ever really think about.
So get your slice of hero dirt while you can. Remember where you’ve been, be excited about where you’re going … but most importantly, be STOKED on where you are. Enjoy the ride.
Fat Tire Tuesday columnist Sarah Hansing has been slinging wrenches as a pro bike mechanic for 15 years (with the exception of a one year stint working for Trek Bicycles in Wisconsin.) Epicenter Cycling scooped her up as their lead mechanic and the shop’s crew plans to keep her forever. Sarah loves riding singletrack, wrenching on bikes, and hanging out with her jerk-face but adorable cat Harlan. (Who is a jerk.)
Join the Tribe