inklingfair I started on two books this week: Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance and Lonesome Dove. Two books out of a bunch I asked Josh to download for the Kindle.
I had almost forgotten how it felt to be really in communion with the wilderness in the way we were cycling in Leyte – and how green and foolish I realized we were after the trip – setting out not knowing how to patch a punctured inner tube or change a chain link. Now I remember, and I wish I could be that impulsive again.
Nitch was right, cutting through the rice fields at 50kph as the sun set with a light drizzle in our faces – it’s the closest you can get to flying on land. You, the ground rushing by, without the hermetically sealed shell of a car separating you from the elements. It was glorious.
Tonight Father Paolo arrived back from a mission in small town Italy and he regaled us with stories of talking to strangers and being invited in for meals and a bed (they were not allowed to bring money or a phone or even a change of clothes) – and I asked myself, would I ever do that? Or would I be content with vicarious adventures?
I asked Josh if we could do the Marinduque loop next year – three days cycling the island, around 140km. February, perhaps, dry but not too hot. We’ll see.
Photo by arief santoso on Unsplash
