Been hurt going too fast
finally has slowed me down.
Yet, even moving slowly,
no faster than I can pedal,
seemingly unavoidable obstacles
hinder otherwise graceful momentum.
Hints of road rage become bells
of mindfulness to momentarily
pause, breathe calmly & smile.
Upon remembering I’m alive
& well, compassion is borne
for myself & others involved.
Staying ever vigilant of distracted drivers.
Many are, understandably, super stressed this season.
Tired of so much real losing; losing what
was once possible for humanity & all beings.
Losing income, losing homes to fires & foreclosures.
Sad, complex social, economic & political landscapes
ruled by unqualified, greedy & unworthy leaders
who heartlessly cage children, spew anger & hate
contributing to many losing their sense of community.
Determined to live with dignity & peace,
I’m hugging the obstacles, which I can,
while maintaining joy & playing
around with the ones I cannot embrace.
Ours & our children’s future depends upon
experiencing moments of happiness & fearlessness.
When going out, let’s laugh & play; bring the young ones.
We are very afraid of being powerless.
But we have the power to look deeply at our fears,
and then fear cannot control us…
If we can relax when our strong emotions come,
then we don’t pass fear on to our children and to future generations. ~Thich Nhat Hanh
smilecalm 
Beautiful post about calm between obstruction, finding joy where all seems
impossible.
And of course, another perfect quote by Thich Nhat Hanh.
Miriam
your receiving this posts message makes me smile, Miriam! wishing joyful time for play
during your day 🙂
Looks like fun, and I appreciate your interpretation of riding around street obstacles.
thanks for the kind observation, Stephen! tis fun, yes, but got to pay attention to driverless, i mean distracted driver, vehicles. wishing you happy play 🙂
amazing
that obstacles
look much like
dunce caps
that’s true, Tippy!
they’re also referred to
as witches’ hats.
while i don’t hunt them
they’re fun playing with 🙂
brilliant thought!
and smilecalm,
you are such a great poet
Clever weaving David.
So much hope in the kids coming through @StrikeClimate and #SchoolStrike around the world. Pendulum swings and dinosaurs die. And awareness of intergenerational trauma is out there. Shining lights into darkness.
Happy Christmas to you (or whatever your celebration of choice – for us it’s Christmas) and thanks for your timely reminders through the year – best wishes for 2019, and the wisdom gained from negotiating obstacles.
Sarah
thank you for this kind wish!
makes me happy hearing that youth are taking actions
of love & resilience, dear Sarah!
seems an overabundance of obstacles & cones to negotiate.
may they be successful & experience some laughter along the way.
i’ll have a simple Christmas, with a tree and music.
wishing you & yours joyful Christmas
with something yummy to eat
and nice soap to clean up 🙂
Best wishes for a happy holy-day
and better new year coming.
Perhaps the dark period is almost over.
Tom
i appreciate your kind reflections
and wishes, Tom!
i believe the nights will
be getting shorter.
wishing you & yours
warmth, fun & lots of light 🙂
Lovely musings on embracing the challenges in life. Happy cycling…
smiling from my bike
to your happy words, Brad!
wishing you seasons greetings
filled with love & joy, david 🙂
Thank you David. Blessings to you and yours.
Your schtuff is schweet 😌
i’ve not heard such a kind phrase, Ana!
may take a cycle out to the bakery
to live up to it.
wishing you joyful moments 🙂
Enjoy that croissant! 😊
This would have been very hard for me to ride there 🙂 But you did great, I love bikes… And I loved the message too… Thank you, Happy Holiday and Best Wishes for the New Year, Love, nia
thank you, dear nia, for kind words & sharing about your connection to bikes. was most fun when I lived in the Netherlands.
plenty of obstacles here.
wishing you, also
the happiest Christmas, david 🙂
Vigilant and mindful cycling around mindless drivers.Take it easy out there David ❣️Thank you for sharing this message of hope for humanity.
If we can relax when our strong emotions come, then we don’t pass fear on to our children and to future generations. ~Thich Nhat Hanh
Seasons Greetings and a hug to you. 💛
smiling to your caring sentiment, Val!
i’ll do my best to keep all three
of my eyes open out there!
holiday hug back at you 🙂
Beautiful.
Thanks for the reminder. 😎
thank you, dear ashiftinconsciousness 🙂
A big thank you, David, for showing me the way forward through all of this chaos around us.
going with the flow
best we can, Rosaliene!
training to be nimble,
with the possibility
of joy every moment
despite the severity
of whats going on 🙂
I’m glad your practice helps you navigate the cones of stress and distress and preserve your joy to share with the young ones! Merry Christmas and Happy New Year, David! 🎄🙏🎁
why thank you for that kind, professional reflection, Sunny!
certainly i would not be as peaceful inside
without this way of living mindfully.
wishing you the best Christmas & new
year, also, david 🙂
A beautiful reminder to ride through life, learning we have no control over the obstacles ahead, but always have an opportunity to see them from a higher perspective. Wishing you and your family a wonderful holiday season David. May your light and energy continue to shine and guide others to see a clearer path in 2019 ✨✨🌈🌲🎄✨
thank you for your generous words & great idea, Karen!
seeing things from above,
maybe with a drone,
and i could change course
sooner than later.
nah, wouldn’t be practical
on a bike.
my holiday is peaceful
already, but thank you for making it moreso.
wishing you a happy fun season, also 🙂
A fascinating cross-over with the cycle slalom and navigating life, on fear, on loss of what was, on new futures. Beautifully written, it made for interesting reading!
Wishing you and your family a very Merry Christmas 🎄
Caz xx
smiling to your kind comment, Caz!
those were the words that happened
to get inspired by the photos, then written.
May you feel happy, well and have fun
during this Christmas time. 🙂
Modern life and times do seem like a constant slalom ride. Interesting analogies.
thank you for your kind, insightful reflection, Lignum Draco!
as James Taylor sang, “might as well enjoy the ride.”
Really enjoy your shots of Japan, where i was stationed
back in the 70’s; too young to fully appreciate or photograph.
wishing you happy holiday time 🙂
Powerful and all-encompassing post, David. Aptly reading this on a busy road (as a passenger I hasten to add),and will now see the obstacles I encounter differently, with calm … this goes for the hindrances in life as well. How true that the onus is on us to teach our children through our actions how to react to problems ‘while maintaining joy & playing
around with the ones I cannot embrace.’
thank you for this reflection, Annika
revealing a kindred understanding!
wishing you pleasant journeys
with time to play along the way,
with the cones or whatever
the hindrances.
and happy Christmas times with those
near & dear to your heart 🙂
Life has a way of slowing us down, David, especially when the age numbers begin to get large. Learning to be more careful is a good thing, I suppose. And living life with JOY despite the obstacles, disallowing fear to tamper our Essences of who we are, well!, sounds like a plan to me!! Merry Christmas, dear friend! Enjoy the holidays! 💝💝💝
smiling to your energetic
going at just the right speed
for the conditions attitude, Amy!
i suppose i’ll really have to slow
down when i get old.
for now, it’s fun to play.
thank you for the kind wishes
and may all your Christmas time be bright 🙂
“Determined to live with dignity & peace,
I’m hugging the obstacles, which I can,
while maintaining joy & playing
around with the ones I cannot embrace.
Ours & our children’s future depends upon
experiencing moments of happiness & fearlessness.
When going out, let’s laugh & play; bring the young ones.”
Oh this made me smile with hope 🙂
truly makes me happy
that we’re able to continue
offering each other a little
inspiration & hope, Ka!
wishing you play
around the cones
& happy holiday moments, david 🙂
💗
David, have a wonderful holiday and may joy and compassion both come from you and fly into you in constant motion.
thank you, dear JC
for your advice & encouragements!
does seem these movements are constant
even when sitting still & quiet.
wishing you joyful holiday moments
as they present themselves in technicolor 🙂
Great post and quote, David – great timing for me 🙂 Thank you for always being a source o peace and wisdom. I hope you have a happy Christmas and a wonderful New Year!
thank you for the kind, supportive comment, dear Inese!
hope you were successful weaving around any cones along your way.
i do aspire to stay peaceful, despite the non-peaceful events going on and try to share with others. it’s how the public health of my past continues on.
wishing you beauty, wonderful & relaxed times during these holidays, david 🙂
Thank you so much, David. May peace remain with you.
Thank you for these words of wisdom and comfort. Joy and courage are always with us, sometimes deep inside, waiting for when we need them.
thank you for being a kind, supportive advisor, JoAnna! yes, what we need is inside, and i’m amazed with it presents itself.
happy Christmas to you and your loved ones 🙂
Happy Christmas, David. To you and those you love. 🙂
Be safe out there, David, and enjoy the blessings of the season! 🙏🤗
i’ll do my best, dear Linda!
thank you for your kindness all year.
wishing you joy, blessings
& a nice snack under the tree 🙂
David, a great metaphor, navigating around the cones….the obstacles. We’re living through a transitional time and I only hope humanity survives it and is able to better itself – to evolve. Time will tell….
Thank you for this fitting post, during this season of the Solstice. 😊
smiling in peaceful solidarity with your kind sentiments, dear Betty! may we keep love alive, trying to help others wake up & prepare for transition, well underway. i know it’s no fun running into one of those cones on a bike. wise to slow down, imho. wishing you happy moments of connection this season 🙂
Resonating with your thoughts, my friend.
It’s a challenging time, especially I think for those with children. I like what Thich Nhat Hanh has to say.
Wishing you much joy for the season and the new year.
Alison
i’m happy being gifted these words
from a wise world-adventurer, Alison!
joyful holidays & new years to you, david 🙂
Beautiful words David. May those fleeing from their homes regain their freedom from fear.
Thank you for your peaceful message in these times.
Merry Christmas
thank you for offering me the gift of you kind words, shobhna!
happy holiday moments wishes for you and yours 🙂
Yes, ’tis the season for distraction, over-doing, and stress. A pleasure to be here today, David, with your reminder of peace and tranquility and ways to slow down and take in the beauty. Really liked the quote from Thich Nhat Hanh, too. Warm wishes for a lovely new year.
Wonderful inspiring post David.. despite many obstacles, we still keep peddling along our various roads, knowing even the detours, even though they take us uphill and down dales, without the views they gave us, we would not have had the experience they had given us..
Its good to slow down, stop peddling for a while, and just sit beside the road, take in the view and breatheeeeee,,,
Happy New Earth Year to you David, many thanks for your support, and sending well wishes for 2019 and Beyond.. ❤
Charlee: “Merry Christmas, a little bit late!”
Chaplin: “And Happy New Year, a little bit early!”
We can control fear and become the peaceful loving humans we are meant to be. Happy New Year David 🙂
such succinct insight, dear Michele!
i should get right to the point
& skillfully use few words, thanks 🙂
“Determined to live with dignity & peace,
I’m hugging the obstacles, which I can,
while maintaining joy & playing
around with the ones I cannot embrace.”
What a wonderful wish for the new year. I love the photo of the pond and blue sky and the silhouette of the bicycle wheel. Happy New Year. ❤
thank you, dear D Wallace Peach!
was cycling across the dam with the right light.
sending smiles for your 2019 🙂
Slowing down in a fast season-enough to put the brakes on what brings us pain and harm. Thanks for your mindful ride through this time. As always, beautiful photos of your life make me feel I am riding with you.
Sending lots of happiness your way,
Celia
thank you for your kind sharing, dear Celia!
makes me happy knowing you are there
doing your best for yourself
and other beings 🙂
Keep on dodging those obstacles, David. The world needs your gentle presence.🙂
gratitude for your spirited cheer-leading, JD!
i’m dodging them
nearly as fast as they put them up 🙂