“You’re brave,” the woman at the desk said.
“You ride your bike in traffic so confidently.
I stick to the sidewalks.”

“You’re a good listener,” someone else said the next day.

Then another person
and another
told me something that helped me believe
I’m valuable, needed, and wanted.

“Do you hear that?” You say, heart smiling.

I talk about it in spiritual direction
and come away elated.
I ride into my life with confidence,
picturing the freedom to swoop past
the loud voices that say I’m expendable.

But I can’t.

I’m knocked down again.
“Get off the street,” an experience yells out the window.

I think about returning to the sidewalk
where it’s safe.

But bikes don’t belong on sidewalks
and neither do I.

Someone once asked Saint Benedict, who lived in the fifth century, “What do you monks do in the monastery all day?” And he said, “Fall down and get up. Fall down and get up. Fall down and get up.” –James Finley, in “Breathing God”, an interview with Tami Simon

Credits and References:
“Woman on bike” by  pikpik,com. Royalty free. 
Leaving the Sidewalk by Esther Hizsa, 2024
“Adorable girl on a bike” by Skylar Ewing at Pexels.com

© Esther Hizsa, An Everyday Pilgrim, 2024.
The unauthorized use and/or duplication of this material without permission from Esther Hizsa is prohibited. Excerpts and links may be used provided there is a link to the original content and credit is given as follows: © Esther Hizsa, An Everyday Pilgrim 2013-2024.  http://www.estherhizsa.com