Yogi Berra is often quoted as saying “when you come to the fork in the
road, take it.” And many of us have taken it, but it has not always been the
right fork. We have a saying among those who ride “you are never lost as long
as you still have gas.” And I can attest to that one too, as I have been many
places where I didn’t know where I was, or where I was going, but the fact I
still had gas kept me going. Until another fork in the road. So it is with
going for a ride, sometimes the best ones are only one fork in the road ahead.
But I have also taken the wrong fork, where gas was not available, and even
though I knew the road led to nowhere, kept going. Such is the spirit of
adventure. Or foolishness. You decide. So over the years I have decided not
to venture further from gas than I can’t get back to. And it works, generally
like any other rule, except I have been known to break it and pay the
consequences. What makes the best handling, most comfortable the most
miserable? Try pushing 500 pounds when out of gas. When just few miles back I
was enjoying the curves, now they all seem to be uphill, and against me. For
Harley guys, add 400 pounds, and suddenly you understand why a lighter bike can
be more comfortable. Not the best reason to buy, but one afternoon spent
pushing when you should be riding can help you decide. Subtract the fun factor
of riding, add the embarrassment of pushing in front of others, particularly
those who don’t ride, “I thought they got great gas mileage,” and all those
cheeseburger calories you just ate come in handy, unless they to bite you
first. So the lesson for today is, it is better to be on the road, than along
side of it.
But the more you ride, the more opportunities you have to do shoulder
time. Down time. Wishing you were still riding, or anywhere else time. In
1973 BH and I decided to go to Summer Jam-in Watkins Glen featuring The Dead,
The Band, and The Allman Brothers. Ticketron tickets in hand, we set off for
the 350 mile ride, totally unprepared, but willing and eager. Remember another
saying about old age and treachery will outmaneuver youth and brains, here is
exhibit a. We were cruising along, and as we got closer to the Glen, the single
lane roads became more crowded. And wouldn’t you know it, a fork in the road.
With a huge tree in the median, with a BMW parked under it, with a flat tire.
Now this guy had planned better than us, but not packed better, as his bike was
seriously overloaded. And to make matters worse, his rear tire was flat. And
all his tire patching equipment and tire tools were under the seat, under the
overpacked bags. Being part of the brotherhood we are, we stopped to help. I
was on my BMW R60/5, which also had a tool kit, but when we offered to help, he
started to unpack his ride. Mine was accessible, but his being harder to get
to, he started the tear down. After a half hour, the bike was unpacked, and he
had the tire off, which I offered to patch for him. Being 90 degrees with 100%
humidity, no 7-11 in sight, we all shared the burden. While those in cars crept
by at 5mph. Consider us free entertainment. But after I fixed the flat, and
had put the tire back together, he decided to have a smoke before putting the
wheel back on. So moving back from the road, so not to get hit by a car cutting
across the Y, we sat under the tree, and he was thanking us when a car cut
across, barely missing his bike, but not his tire. He had left the tire out in
the open, and this yuk drove over it, and kept going-bending his rim into a V,
or really more of a U. This idiot in the car, when he came upon a fork in the
road, had taken it. Right over this man’s tire! I’ll bet Yogi wasn’t ready for
that one.
After consoling him for a while, we left him there. For the weekend, as
the bike was unridable, the tire and wheel destroyed, and so was his weekend.
Leaving him with his wheel bent into a U shape, giving a whole new meaning to
the term “U turns.”
I hear many Christians talking about making a U turn for Christ, there is
even a camp by that name. But since that night outside of Watkins Glen, I look
at U turns a bit differently. A true U turn means making a full 180 degree
turn, and going the other way. A good idea, but like this fork in the road,
what if one appears? How do you make a U turn at a Y intersection? So I have
found that although U turns sound OK, it is better to follow God when you come
to the fork in the road. Right or left may be the choice, but in any event,
turn from where you were going, and turn to Jesus. And follow Him. He will
give good direction, but we still need to follow them. But what happens if we
come upon a fork, and we fail to ask? Or worse yet, fail to listen? He never
leaves us, and is there to get us back on track, or on the road. And when we
sin, or fall away, he is still there with us. Unlike some who have foolishly
advised others, “when you get it together, then you are welcome here in
church.” Or “we can’t have people like you here, what if Jesus came?” You mean
He isn’t? God’s grace is not dependent on us, but on Him. We cannot earn it,
and it can be hard to explain, it is best experienced. And that is where we
come in-in obedience. Follow Jesus out of the dark. Out of the dead end. He
will take us on the right path, the right road. When we come to a fork, He
knows which way to go. He not only knows the way back, HE is the way back. But
will we follow?
Standing on the corner in downtown San Diego the other night, it had been a
long day. Longer for others, and after ministering at the Dustin Arms, we were
walking back to the truck. Doug was tired, and while waiting for the green
light, I asked him, “do you know how to avoid that rundown feeling?” Turning he
smiled, and I answered, “look both ways before steeping off the curve.” As a
car whizzed past. So before you step off he curb, or come to the fork in your
life, before you head away form a gas station with your reserve light on,
consider Jesus. He will never leave you, but you will find that following Him
is safer and more fun. And getting where you are going is much better than
having your wheel run over. Maybe the one thing that makes you wish the tire
was only flat, not bent. Make the turn to Jesus today. 45-90-120-180 degrees,
follow Him and avoid the consequences. U turn if needed, but follow Him, not
some cool sounding phrase.
By the way, we never made it to Summer Jam, too much traffic. So we took
another road, and had the best weekend riding I ever had. One fork in the road
was a DISASTER, the other led out of town, and onto great roads. You never know
what lies ahead, aren’t you glad Jesus does. Just make the right turn
today.
love with compassion,
Mike
matthew25biker.blogspot.com