Today makes 3 years since I was waylaid by a car that ran a red light. I never imagined how much it would change my life. As I get ready for bed tonight (taking Aleve because my titanium femur aches when I spend all day walking at my job) I can’t help but be thankful that I’m physically as well as I am, and mentally adjusted to deal with what my new “normal” is.
The question is, if I knew I was going to end up in the hospital when I started riding my bike, would I still have done it? How much risk is acceptable… especially considering the massively potential benefits? How do we go through life mitigating risk? Should we live in fear, cowering in the dark every day of our lives?
No. Life is meant to be lived. Pain is a part of life, in varying amounts. Joy, love, exhilaration, and happiness are also part of life, also in varying amounts. We can’t only expect comfort and pleasant sailing when we’re accomplishing difficult things. It makes me even more thankful for the happiness I do have, and the good things that have happened. A lot of people would be bitter. I am thankful. Not thankful for the pain, but thankful that I lived to tell about it, and realize how much I had taken for granted. Thankful that God allowed me to recover, and through it, brought me closer to Him.
Don’t live life afraid. Embrace it fully, experience it deeply, and put forth your best, warts and all. Sometimes it will hurt. You just get up, get back on the bike, and keep riding. Continue reading “Three Years: Looking Back”
Three Years: Looking Back
