the brothers and the bike

"Come on, bubba, let's go!"
"All right, all right," he laughed, "I'm coming. Race you!"

The two brothers, one sixteen and the other seven, raced to the garage to grab their bikes. For the little tyke it was a monumental day, the first since his training wheels had been removed. The elder hovered over his brother like a brooding mother hen as they both gathered their bicycles, strapped on their helmets, and walked to the end of the driveway.

"You ready, little guy?"
"YEAH!" His reply echoed down the street and into the next,"let's go!"

And so the two brothers mounted their bikes, ready to conquer the world. The brothers took off slowly, the younger still a bit unsteady on his wheels. They rode side by side, the elder holding out his hand, hovering it just behind the younger's back. An unseen support ready to step in and prevent disaster if needed. All the while, the little brother sat proudly, grinning from ear to ear, pride spreading across every inch of his small 45" frame. Today, he was riding his bike without help. Today he was a "big kid."

So he rode, blissfully unaware of his protective guiding hand, down the gutter and into the next block; he was content to be riding through life and confident that he could succeed.

I drove by the pair last summer, a silent observer bound by the car beneath me and the fleeting glance I was able to devote to this oddly touching scenario. It was a moment in which I wished that I traveled with my camera to capture for others a snapshot like the one I saw that day of the love and care that was being so innocently and purely demonstrated.

And in that moment I felt myself feeling oddly closer to God.

After all, am I not the younger brother, riding through life, all-too-often blissfully unaware of the dangers, potholes, and bumps that could easily toss me over my handlebars? My confidence and peace comes, not unlike the young mans, from the knowledge that my Father is riding along beside me, His hand tenderly (though sometimes forcefully) guiding me through life's paths. But it is often when I don't sense His hand or somehow manage to forget that it is there that His presence is most important.

I am thankful that I'm not alone and that even in times like the ones I find myself in now, where I feel utterly and completely alone in my ride through life, that God is right beside me, His hand outstretched and ready.


that's all.