Today is happening right now. Tomorrow will come soon enough and yesterday is gone, never to return. Simple enough to say, harder to appreciate in the day to day of our lives.
Years ago I was in NYC somewhere on the lower east side late one night and grabbed some Chinese takeaway. Along with my food I got the customary fortune cookie. It was about 1:00 am when I returned to my hotel room and opened the bag and read my fortune. It said, “Don’t let the past and useless details choke your existence”. It was the strangest fortune I had ever gotten. Not much of a “fortune” at all really. I stood there 12 floors up on the east side and stared out the window at the city below. I had been traveling for some time and this was the first quiet time I had to myself. I ate some more of my noodles and thought about the fortune a bit. It seemed like good advice so I decided there and then to remember it. I put it in my wallet and carried it with me for years until I lost it somewhere. It reminded me to be in the moment and to enjoy the experiences that are happening right now, to enjoy the people and places I find myself in because at the end of the day once that time is gone, it's gone. I try hard not to forget the advice.
The thing we love about this cycling life is it gives us an immediate connection to the present, it involves us directly in the moment…the wind in the face, the tires on the road, the effort of the climb. Riding makes the here and now of life the important thing. Cycling puts us firmly in the present, in a way that few other sports can. You cannot ride your bike and daydream about the future, or regret the past, you are in the moment. There are so few times in this adult life when that happens, so few times when you can wash away the stresses of the everyday. All of our clarity comes from time spent on the bike. This modern life we all lead is all about planning and thinking, constantly weighing decisions or worrying about what will come, letting what has already happened define us, limiting how we think about ourselves and what is possible. Riding gives us perspective.
Spring is coming. The days are warming, the slow grind of winter is finally coming to an end. Remember to ride all the bikes, to drink all the coffee, to be with your friends and family, because the days go by and the present is actually the real world we live in.
Non Dimenticare Chi Sei.
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