In my post on uncertainty yesterday, I mentioned Father has me going down memory lane. Last night, I was drowning in memories of a decade’s worth of motorcycle riding. My rear end has spent many hours traveling many miles on the back of a Ducati ST4s. (Pronounced DUE-Kah-TEE. It is Italian.) On several occasions, I parked my fanny on Donovan’s various bikes. I prefer the seat of a touring bike over the seat of a crotch rocket. 😂 Comfort matters when sitting for hours in one position. Eventually, I got pretty slick about safely standing up while riding to stretch out those legs and take the pressure off the rear end for a moment. Amazing the difference it can make in your ability to endure the miles.
When I woke up this morning, my motorcycle travels were still on my mind. I suspected last night…I was supposed to do a post. BUT…I was uncertain still…I wanted more confirmation before I moved ahead. In everything I do…I must be 100% convinced before I do it. Once I am 100% convinced, I move forward. Not 100% convinced…not budging. Going nowhere and doing nothing. It is how I roll.
Q & A
I was struggling to see how to make this post work. Lots of questions in my mind. One post compiling kind of like a collage or a separate post for different trips? 🤔
I had to do a ton of inner healing before I could even do a blog. I am not my favorite topic. Many people LOVE talking about themselves…not me. I have been Ms. Private. Father and I had MANY arguments in the past regarding me coming out of the cave. My preference…stay hidden. So, doing a blog that is ALL about my life…wow…shoot me. Seems so arrogant and narcissistic to me. Repulsive.🤢🤮 Who cares about my life…and specifically…my motorcycle trips?
Then…I started asking Him…why are we even talking about this? Why are you bringing up certain memories? Why are we going down memory lane?
He brought up a song again. Reminiscing by the Little River Band. I did a post about that back in January.
He was saying…we are reminiscing about positive memories now. We have cleaned up the negative aspects of life…now we are going back and reflecting on the positive.
Ok…gotcha. 🙃
Riding Trips
Over my ten years of riding, we took many trips. I was blessed to get to travel a lot. In this post, you will see pictures of the Holy Grail of riding…The Dragon. You will see other pictures of various trips. One particular trip, I couldn’t find pictures of. I think I lost it when my hard drive went down. I am finding corrupted pics from that horrible day. 🤨 Makes me sick, but I suspected I had lost some folders. Feeling the pain. One long weekend, we went to Alabama and Mississippi. Toured the coast. I had pictures of Dauphin Island…can’t find them. Dauphin Island is located just west of Gulf Shores. I think we went to Biloxi that weekend too. Can’t remember. Getting old. 😂
Before my health took a nosedive, we made a lot of trips to eat at restaurants on Diners, Drive-ins, and Dives. Guy Fieri. It was a thing we did. Always trying new places.
Minimalism
One thing I loved about motorcycle riding was the fact gas was cheaper than compared to driving a car. It was also minimalistic in nature. A person packs what will fit in the bags on the bike. This style fit well with me because I love spur of the moment…spontaneous…surprises. I can plan…and I do plan at times. However, I tend to be a spur of the moment…go with the flow…spontaneous kind of gal. A free spirit. We make a decision about a location…pack a change of outfit…let’s go. Let’s ride. It was wonderful. Within minutes, you are on the road. No waiting around. I am not a fan of waiting around. 😳
Nature
Another thing I loved about riding was the fact I was not in a box. Most people spend their whole lives living in a box. I will visit the box on occasion…but living inside of a box is death to me.
Religion is one example of a box. A man-made box. Rules, regulations, doctrines, and traditions of man that nullify Father’s word. Can’t do it. No thank you. Living inside that box…makes me crazy. Can’t follow man’s rules. It isn’t natural. Not how He intended the covenant to play out between Him and man. Between Christ and His Bride. Between His Spirit and His people.
Riding on a motorcycle feels like freedom. Hard to describe. It feels like you are part of nature. All senses experience nature. The wind. The rain. The heat. The cold. The smells. The feel of the road. The sounds.
Even experiencing traffic…is a whole different level when on a bike. You are constantly aware of everything and everyone around you. Watching to see how the other drivers are responding to you. Do they SEE you? It is important.
You are watching the animals. Are they squishable? Are they NOT squishable? Every animal you encounter on a motorcycle matters…greatly.
The awareness while riding a motorcycle is different than in a boxed-in vehicle with protection all around you. For me…it stimulated my mind in a way riding in a vehicle did not. I was always alert.
Tractor Time
Years ago, each week, I spent between two to four hours every spring, summer, and fall in a tractor seat. We had planted a thousand or so trees in a couple of fields. In one field, I would mow around those trees each week. Depending on how closely I mowed…determined how long it took me to finish the field.
That time was important to me. It was MY time. I could sit on that tractor and talk to Father uninterrupted. Nobody bothered me while I was mowing the field.
I LOVED sitting on that tractor each week. When Donovan got old enough to start mowing, he wanted to take over. I was adamant that boy was not taking my tractor time from me. He battled…he lost. 🤣
However, he was given a mower behind his 4-wheeler, so I think there was a compromise given. 🤷♀️
Replacement
When I had to move from the country to the city, I didn’t know what to do with myself. Wow…that was a hard transition for me. Death. Killer. I am a nature nut…country girl. To put me in a city of concrete…I hated it. Thankfully, I moved to a river town with a riverfront walkway. It became a daily destination for me. I need time in nature.
What eventually happened for me, my motorcycle time…had become a replacement for my tractor time. While riding on the back of that bike, it became a place for Father and I to talk uninterrupted again. Hours of sitting there being intimate with Him.
It is really the biggest reason why I loved motorcycle riding like I did. I spent hours alone with the one I loved. Father gave me the time that had been stolen from me.
Change
I have noticed a significant change for me in the last week. The places I have been walking around here…are getting old to me. I am getting tired of the same old walks here. It feels like to me that he is changing things up. Preparation for something different I believe. Something drastic has changed in me. Haven’t a clue why. But I feel like I need to get on the road and travel. I need new stimulation. Something different. The old has to go and the new has to come in its place. I am bored with the old.
My mind constantly needs new stimulation, or I get agitated. I am always hungry. Hungry for new foods. New experiences. New scenery.
Grief
We were discussing yesterday…my grief over the loss of my dad. It has been almost three years now. I was wondering if the tears that come…are a result of either lie-based pain or truth-based pain that I needed MORE truth on. Grief is a real thing…but also pain is rooted mostly in a lie-based belief system. At times…at the bottom of the barrel is truth-based pain. Exchanging your “my truths” for His truth will alleviate all pain. I was checking with Him…do I need more truth here to squelch the tears that come at times.
He shared two things with me. One…there is a time for mourning. Ok…gotcha. That is legit. Two…He said…you want to be with your Father…ME. OH…OK…gotcha. This place is not my home…I would prefer to be with my Creator. My earthly father reminds me that I want to be with my Heavenly Father. Made perfect sense to me.
Van Life
It led me back to the trip I took out West after my dad passed away. 11,000 miles in 34 days. Bliss. Absolute bliss. Living minimalistically in this little van and having the freedom to go wherever I wanted to go. Driving to my little heart’s desire. Experiencing life. Sleeping in a tent in nature at night. Driving with the windows down. Hiking in the woods. Unbelievable amount of mental stimulation for my mind. LOVED every single moment of it…except the first night in Kansas City. 😂
I had called Vanessa the next morning and told her I was coming home. She was angry. Said…NO you are NOT. You are supposed to be camping in a tent…not sleeping in a truck stop parking lot with the doors open. Rough night.
She set me straight and I continued on. She was right. Super thankful for my girls. Man…I can’t do life without them. I have a wonderful support system under and around me. Father has richly blessed me.
I am longing for something greater. Longing for excitement. Adventure. Stimulation. Goodness. Richness of foods to consume. New locations. New experiences. A new life. Running water…not stagnant.
I am ready to go. Ready for some traveling.
Goodness. Waiting is hard. 😳
Photos
Below is a collection of some of my motorcycle pics from different times on the bike. A few I felt led to share. It has been sweet reminiscing about my hours on the back of that Ducati. A time of intimacy for me. 🥰 ❤️
Enjoy!
