Summer Day

A near-perfect summer day: it started out cool, in the low sixties. The morning was productive, and I shared lunch with a local colleague who I’ve known slightly before moving here. We ate on the deck of a restaurant on the river. Though it was hotter by early afternoon, lunching in the shade on the river bank was delightful.

Then a bike ride on the river bike path. I love bike riding and was consternated to find my trusty bike stolen a couple of days after I arrived here. To be honest, I did not ride it much living in that huge Southwestern metro area. The roads were dangerous and the bike paths were underneath high tension lines, for pete’s sake! Not conducive to a great ride, or even a good ride. I love taking in nature in huge chunks when I’m riding, and the high tension wires did absolutely nothing for me. I wanted to resume riding here, so I shopped for a new bike. In my days of test riding, I made the mistake of testing out one that was beyond (way beyond) what I wanted to pay. But after I rode that baby, you know what I bought. It’s only the down payment on my future house! [I’m kidding, kind of].

So the river path here is long and there are many segments that are fun and give me the communion with nature that I crave. So after my wonderful lunch, I took off with my bike and rode on a different part of the path, one that is close to the river for many miles. Other parts of this section are forested – the smell of the moss, the deep green of the woods, the liquid bird songs and the occasional bunny scurrying across the path lifted my soul. When I got to the meadow parts, the smell of grasses and that sweet meadow aroma wafted my way. I could almost taste blackberries! The sun was hot, but the wind cooled me off. The marshy river sections were salty, tangy and pungent. Geese and egrets dotted the shore. It was a great ride – twelve miles as I get used to riding again. This bike is so much faster than my old bike. Even my slowest today was as fast as I ever went on my old bike. I’m happy!

Hot and sweaty coming home, I took a cool shower and had a farmer’s market-inspired dinner. Roasted beets with a balsamic splash on fresh greens. An organic egg deviled with wasabi mustard and smoked Spanish paprika. A fresh ripe tomato and basil with fresh mozzarella. And a New York organic Riesling.

This is how summer is s’posed to be. I’ll go to bed early because I go to the airport at 4:30 AM to see the youth from the church I’ll be officially serving come next Tuesday off on their trip to Guatemala.