I fell off my pushbike today.
I was following Ross and he navigated a tricky pedestrian crossing at the lights.
A car stopped for him and the driver waved him on.
I was happy to stop and wait, however the driver waved me on too.
I felt pressured to keep going, although I’m not as proficient at riding as Ross.
Of course I fell over.
Right in the middle of the road.
Right in front of the driver.
Right in front of all the other cars that were stopped at the lights.
I was embarrassed.
I was hurt and Ross was nowhere to be seen.
The young driver called out to see if I was ok.
I had somehow landed on my backside with both legs in the air and I managed to roll over and found myself laying there with hands, palms facing down on the road, for what seemed like minutes before I gathered myself and untwisted the bike and walked to the other side of the road.
Where was Ross?
All I wanted to do was cry and melt into his arms.
He had ridden up the road and was waiting; sitting on a seat outside our destination.
Now I was mad.
Instead of melting into his arms, I wanted to punch him.
“Get a mirror”, I screamed
“Get a mirror on that damn bike so you can see what’s happening behind you.”
Of course, this outburst came because of an earlier frustration I had had with him not hearing me call out when we were riding in Darwin.
And to my point, no matter what we are doing, we need to be present and remain alert and of course, not pressure ourselves when we’re in situations that are uncomfortable.
What will you do?
Will you get a mirror?
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