Do we really have to stop again?
May 7, 2008
Posted by CindyW in : Green Journal , trackback
My kids’ school is about 4 miles of driving distance from our house. Luckily we also have a more direct 3-mile bike/walk trail that is mostly separated from car traffic. Going to school on bikes is pretty much out of the question, since we rarely manage to get there on time in the morning even on a good day. However I’ve always been meaning to come home on bikes with my girls, but just haven’t for one lame excuse or another – the weather, swimming, gymnastic, blah, blah, blah.
Since May is the National Bike Month and Green Bean had me think about biking too, yesterday I was shamed into trying it for the first time since I thought about it 3 months ago. The logistics was a bit complicated. Aside from their regular backpacks, lunch boxes and knick-knacks, I dropped off a bike for my 5 year old and two helmets at the school.
It was 70 degrees, cloudless and lightly breezy (Is that why we pay $$$$$$$ for a 50 year old house?) when I picked up the girls. Homebound we went:
Okay, so our trail is not nearly as breathtaking. Nonetheless, how can anyone complain about a pleasant biking path like this:
The 3 miles took us one and a half hours: stopped for and stalled by a lizard, some flowers, a humming bird, a marble some kid must have lost, a dry creek, etc., etc., you name it. Whenever I started muttering, “I could’ve walked 5 miles already”, I tried to remind myself to take it all in and see everything through the eyes of my children.
What I have seen is the reason why we ought to ride home every week if not everyday. Green Bean is right on – this isn’t about being green, it is about seeking pleasure and enjoying life.
CindyW at Organicpicks
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Comments»
oh, man! “a MORE DIRECT 3 mile bike/walk trail that is mostly SEPARATED FROM CAR TRAFFIC”- by all means, take advantage of this rarity while the opportunity is there! it sounds and looks lovely. definitely time well spent. aside from the countless chances to see a bit of nature up close and personal, find treasures like marbles along the way, you’ll be modeling for your children in a “this is what we do rather than what we say” way. invaluable. enjoy!
Blogger The Good Life has a little biking challenge going for the summer. I’ll bet you could win it, lured by such a pretty bike-path!
Aren’t little kids great? They notice and love every little thing, and have no sense of time. We all need to be more like that.
becky: When I looked at the picture of the biking path again, I counted my blessings. How can we not take advantage of that?
Joyce: It’s hard to re-adjust my lens and see how children see things. Though it is so easy for me to forget, they remind me constantly
We live about 500 metres from our school, so we walk (unlike our neighbours who all drive- the fools). however now the youngest is out of a stroller the walk takes forever! sometimes i grit my teeth but i tell myself that the time they spend strolling home from school telling me about their day is the sort of ‘quality time’ other families try and squeeze in between after school care and bedtime.
How wonderful! I’m so glad that you guys turned an otherwise routine trip home into an adventure of seeming epic proportions (a lost marble after all clearly falls into the “treasure” category in this house). Beyond cool, too, that you have such a bike path available.
I just finished Simple Prosperity and, among many other things, David Wann discusses how increasing bike paths would get people out of their cars and into nature more. We suddenly start living on the way to an errand, home from school instead of just sitting zoned out in the car. Thanks for sharing this Cindy.
Paula: You are so right. I find myself gritting my teeth as well when the going gets painfully slow. I am learning to be tolerant with the kids’ constant distractions. Occasionally I even enjoy it…
GB: We should get our kids together and go on a marble, oops, treasure hunt
We have many crying episodes when the found marbles are lost again. Serious tragedy. The bike path is a real gift; it is a part of Stevens Creek Trail.
Just love your adventure. It’s so true we need to slow down and breathe life in. And what a lovely way to spend time connecting with your child.
Yay! You are not alone in wanting to have adventures w/your kids, but then struggling when those adventures don’t go as planned. Today my son and I biked w/my husband to work. Easy for me on the way there, my hubby pulled the trailer. On the way home it was so tough going up hills w/the extra weight. At one point we tipped over! I’m embarrassed to admit it…we were fine physically, I just had some serious wounded pride. I also felt myself saying, “We are never doing this again!” But I don’t want that to be true! So we will. The rest of the ride was so nice it overshadows my complaints! We’ve got a bike blog going…http://100bikemiles.blogspot.com. Come check it out if you have time! =)
Thanks DramaMama for sharing your adventure. After 5 years, I have learned with kids you rarely get to carry out any proper plans. Still, I forget that and have to keep reminding myself