At some time in your life you will have to get to work. Even in the days
we face now where many can and do work from home, some time you will have to
attend a meeting or a conference, how will you get there? 20 years ago I
remember the stories of widening I-15 from SR 78 to I-8, making it the widest
stretch of freeway in the nation. Now if you come form rural America, 4 lane
highways may seem big, but here we are talking of 7 or 8 lanes-each way. And
even with the commuter or HOV lanes, traffic still backs up, as we try to put 10
pounds of car in a 5 pound bag known as the freeway. Along the coast we have
the Coaster, a commuter train, cars still fill the freeway, some bus service,
the loser cruiser not a viable alternative, and many ride for pleasure and
because it makes sense. Each one of you know who you are. And each mode of
transportation has its advantages. Case in point...
Some will car pool, sharing rides, and allowing themselves the luxury of
the HOV lane. Except on the 110 going into LA, where the HOV used to be free,
but now is a toll road, and when riding it last week, the toll road was empty,
but the free lanes were backed up. With people who used to use the free HOV
lane. Go figure, it was all about moving traffic wasn’t it? Or was it? I
worked with a man who for years took the Coaster, but he still had to drive his
car to the station and leave it parked all day. Then bought another beater to
leave at his work destination, so he could drive from the Coaster to work.
Still can’t figure that one out, he drove two cars and one train to work, and it
took longer than if he just drove. He claimed he slept on the train, his trust
in people amazing, leaving two cars unattended for hours and sleeping on a
train....But for those of us who ride, it only makes sense, in dollars and
cents, and in time well spent too. We can use the HOV lane for free, except as
the 110 as noted. We can lane split when needed, no need to take up space or
time stuck in an Interstate parking lot that was designed to move traffic at 85
mph. We get better gas mileage, smart cities and businesses now have motorcycle
only parking, and what better way to destress after work than a ride home,
taking the long way? So even from a common sense approach, or dollars and
cents, or efficient use of time argument, motorcycles win every time. Maybe we
are smarter than the average commuter...
But rain, cold, and other inclement weather effect the equation in places
other than So Cal, and we do get rain here-sometimes. So we show our superior
intelligence and choice making abilities and cage it, take the car or truck. I
know few who ride that don’t own a truck for hauling their bike, standard
equipment on American V twins and old Brit bikes, so we struggle on the freeway,
and with every second stuck, we are reminded there is a better way, and for us
it is two wheels. And it becomes evident to us, that in a perfect world, we
would all ride motorcycles. So maybe common sense isn’t as common as we think,
or freedom as free as we think, for once you ride, all the reasons go out the
door with you when you throw a leg over your bike. It’s fun, the fact it just
happens to make sense is an added bonus. Something to ponder as you are waiting
for the train....
Riding is a passion with us, and we overlook the dangers in it. It
develops a lifestyle that we are up front about, and trying to balance out the
good with the bad is not a part of it. Years ago the movie, “The Passion” came
out, the story of Jesus Christ and his crucifixion. Through the horrible
scenes, we get an insight to what he went through, and we get passionate about
him. But for some it is just an emotion, some part of religion, and some just
another movie. It is when we ask ourselves “who is Jesus?” and we answer the
spirit’s calling to follow do we truly see his passion. Do we truly see our
sinful nature, and how the law may be a good way to live, but offers no
salvation. It took God’s agape love for us send his son to die, a moment in
time that we cannot imagine, how God must have felt when he saw his son on the
cross. But we can be blessed by the fact that his love for us transcends his
love for himself, his selfishness is for us, that none should perish. That all
come to know Christ, that we all are forgiven and spend eternity with him in
heaven. Maybe a good thought to ponder when stuck in traffic...or waiting for
the next train. For God so loved each one of us, he sent his son, even if you
were the only sinner that needed to be saved. That’s how important you are to
him, that’s love. And it is offered freely to everyone today, just as you are,
just wherever you are. The ultimate HOV lane, a lane always open to God via his
spirit. Rain or shine. A passion we can get to know, but never know fully for
it is infinite. And we can be amazed at how a little of it can be so
fulfilling. Something that makes no sense in a worldly setting, but makes
perfect sense to God. So if it makes sense to him, don’t you think maybe we
should give it a try?
Today we will find out in many ways, some bigger than others, about how
much we need Jesus. We say we love him, but do we have his passion? Do we care
for others as he cares for us, or is it still about me? A certain blind man
when healed exclaimed “I don’t know if he is good or bad, all I know is I was
blind and now I can see.” But in his passion we see how good he truly is. As
if giving sight to to a blind man would be anything but good. The importance of
seeing things in the spirit, of walking with Christ in the spirit, and trusting
him in spirit. God is always with you, just don’t drive in the HOV alone. The
man won’t get it when you say God is always with you. For the things seen are
temporal, but the things not seen are eternal. No lines in heaven....and with
unrestricted access. In a perfect world we all will ride.
love with compassion,
Mike
matthew25biker.blogspot.com