A Baptism by Asphalt

Senses become heightened, and anticipation grows great in the waning hours before leaving. I try not to plan or strategize, only to stay in tune with what my spirit calls for.

Finally free, the clutch engages, the rubber bites down, and I'm catapulted into escape!

Temperatures drop the higher the road ascends up mountain passes. Road signs and trees are but a blur across my peripheral vision, leaving me focused at the lines on the road.

The crisp mountain air, the scent of pines, cleanses my mind and washes away the sins influencing my thought processes. I can breathe now, I can listen to my heart, I can feel myself once again.


I spot another rider headed the opposite direction. Is he looking to cleanse his mind as well? Is he seeking the same salvation? I hold my hand out, and he holds out his, and we pass each other by in a mere second.

And for just that second, we made a connection. That we're here at this same place and time, on the same quest, with the same understanding. Hands need not be shaken, and business cards need not be traded, only an acknowledgment is necessary to have made a friend.

Yet each of us remains alone to reconnect with ourselves and to reset our minds to that simple essence inside of us.

"It's all a matter of perspective" the old saying goes. But who's perspective? Who influences me? Am I really in control of myself?

I don't really know where I'm headed. The destination isn't the point. The journey itself need be the only quest.