Adventures in Present Moment (part 2)

I shared with you in the last posting about how riding has a minfulness quality to it. I will continue to share my adventure with you.

My eyes focused on the road beyond our group of riders. As we entered the foothills of the Rocky Mountains the view of the peaks disappeared. The saying “too close to the forest to see the trees,” took on a literal meaning. However, I had a chance to ponder the phrase. What does it?

My thoughts turned to times of trouble. When I have been in the thick of thing, such as crises, I usually have to give it some distance before I can gain a clear perspective. Time is one way of creating distance. Time can be a few minutes to several years. My experience has taught me that a crisis does not look the same from the other side. What about you? When you look back how is it different?  How do you gain perspective? Also, focusing on my breath can give me enough distance to allow me to make choices based on my values.

Speaking of other side we were about to reach the top of the continental divide. As you might suspect by now, the higher we got in elevation the lower the temperature. It was getting chilly yet the sky was clear blue with a few puffy white clouds. We stopped to fuel up and gear up. Out came the leather jackets, the chaps and gloves. We had planned for a change in weather conditions and were now ready to continue our ascent up the mountain.

As we got closer to the top, dark clouds emerged from behind the rugged peaks. Eventually it began to rain, the temperature plunged to freezing and the rain became little ice crystals that felt like needle piercing my skin. I had to ask myself, “What was I thinking when I decided to go on this trip?” I was miserably cold, wet and downright uncomfortable. The conditions were adverse.

However, I was in a place where I pretty much had to accept what is. I have learned that when I can accept what is, I can then focus my attendtion and behavior on what can be done. I focused on what is important to me. Right then in the moment I decided my friend with whom I was riding needed attention . “Was she okay? I asked her if she needed anything. She needed to be okay so I would be okay. Hence, I knew with clartiy the value of trust and the connection to safety. I knew in my heart when Melody said she was okay I could believe her. I felt safe. I trusted her.

How about you? What do you value in a relationship? Or let’s go even further,  “What are your values that enhance the quality of your life?” If you need  stimulation for your thoughts or  help in clarifying you values verus morals check out Steve Pavlina’s website containing 375 values. Also, another website to explore is Values.com

Addtionally, I have one final short story to the morocycle ride next week