Spirited Companion




Thank you to my dear friend Alayne Sewell for contributing her photo and writing! 

The free spirit of my bicycle accompanies me in the heat of late afternoon. As it casts a shadow on the warm Waskesui beach, I am grateful for the adventures it has given me. I admit it, I love fluidity and speed. The moment I mount its sturdy frame a thrill of excitement and pleasure floods my body. Freedom! Oh, the places we can go! 

My partner says that I personify objects. In Buddhist theories, all objects possess an energy, so maybe you could say that energy has a spirit. I’m going with that. My bicycle is more than an object. Its hunk of metal and rubber is brave, dependable, and always there for me when I want it -- it’s trusty. It has the kind of spirit that says “Of course you can do this, take the challenge, let’s go!” 

Sometimes my spirited machine hums reassuringly on the smooth pavement underneath. Sometimes its knobby tires crunch fine gravel as we speed along country roads or forest paths. I move with my cycle machine and it moves with me. I hope its spirit gains as much as I do when we are together -- euphoria really. 

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