On the Bike Path

Several mornings a week I leave our house early on my bike for a one hour ride. It is a great way for me to get the blood flowing, the mind working and to get exercise out of the way before hundreds of things get in the way of me doing it in the afternoon. It helps that I am a morning person!

I come across a lot of things on my various routes: squirrels love to dart across in front of my bike; walkers or joggers who cannot hear you when you want to pass them because their ear buds are preventing anything other than their music from entering their mind; cars that pass you and then turn right in front of you. But mostly I come across people.

Last week I was half way through my ride. The most challenging hill was behind me, but there would be a few more in the offing. I turned onto the bike bath and another rider was in front of me. The rider had a BMX style bike and was wearing a hooded sweatshirt with the hood up, black jeans, high top Converse All Stars, and had a full backpack on. It registered with me that school had started and this route was near a Junior High. I had come across a Junior High School student in full Junior High uniform on the way to school.

They rode their bike down the middle of the path oblivious to the fact that someone may come up behind them. I was going to ask to pass when I noticed a white cord snaking out of the pocket of their hoody toward their ears. They pulled out their device with the white cord attached and adjusted the volume. I patiently rode behind them (which for me took immense effort), knowing that I would only be on this section of the path for a short time before I would turn in another direction.

After following them for a short time my nose registered a scent. It took a minute for me to realize it was cigarette smoke. My Junior High friend was smoking a cigarette while riding his bike to school.

My active mind started going a hundred miles an hour.

Isn’t there something ironic about smoking a cigarette while riding a bike?

Seriously, smoking in Junior High? Not that it’s unheard of, but it makes me wonder about their future.

It was 80 degrees outside and they were riding their bike with long black jeans and a hoody. It is an unofficial “uniform,” making a statement, fitting in with their crowd at school.

         

Do they play sports? Are they a good student? What is life like at their home?

          What life path are they on? Where will it lead them?

         

I wonder if they know Jesus, or have any kind of religious affiliation.

         

You may have noticed that I have used non gender specific pronouns to describe my bike path companion. I realized that my knee jerk instinct was to think it was a guy, but it was hard to tell from my vantage point. It could have been a girl.  

         

All of the above ran through my mind in a matter of a minute as I continued to ride.     

I soon turned off the path to finish my route. They continued on their way to school.

         

Periodically, the image of my bike path companion will flash into my mind. I wonder what has happened. I throw a quick prayer up to my boss that they would be safe, prosper, and discover their purpose in life.

         

“Do not forget to entertain strangers, for by doing so some people have entertained angels without knowing it.” (Hebrews 13:2)

         

Oh, and I hope the smoking thing was just a phase!