For the holidays, I bought both my children and myself bicycles as presents. It seemed like a great idea at the time, not only because they’d both been asking for awhile but also because it created a great family activity for all of us – including my 10-year-old daughter Amanda who only recently learned not just to ride a bike but actually to appreciate it. Well, we’ll see if she still feels that way about it in another week!
You see, Amanda was so excited about her new bike that she brought it over to a friend’s house to ride a few weeks ago and while heading down a steep hill did what any novice 10-year-old rider might do. She pulled the front brake!
Any veteran rider knows that pulling your front brakes is a “no no” because it immediately halts the bike in its tracks even though your body may still be in motion. Oops! Yes, that sudden action sent Amanda flying over her handle bars, and when she landed hard on the concrete she broke her wrist in 2 separate places on both sides. Amazingly, her bike was fine after being popped back into place, and she’s actually been in totally good spirits ever since. In fact, she now has pretty blue nail polish that matches her aqua blue cast so life is not all bad for the kid…
So what’s the lesson in all this? For now, simply that wearing a helmet is a really good idea when riding a bike, and I suppose that I have one tough kid on my hands who isn’t going to let a few broken bones damper her spirits. This story clearly isn’t over though, and I truly hope the final lesson is that Amanda’s going to get right back on her bike and ride again once her cast is removed next Tuesday.
I’ve been knocked off my proverbial bike more times than I can count in my lifetime. In those moments, I’ve probably wondered whether or not I should get back on my bike again – or at least considered whether or not I should buy a different bike – more times than I can count too. Fortunately for me and those in my life, I have chosen to get back on my bike time and time again.
Generally speaking, I don’t relate to making mistakes in life. Instead, I choose to experience these incidents as life’s lessons and simply learn from them. I hope that Amanda will do the same!
