Avoiding Death

     When Alex was learning to ride his bike, that was a practice in patience. He could get it going just fine but when it came to stopping he was a little challenged. He didn’t believe me when I told him that gently pushing his pedal backward would slow and ultimately stop him. Nope, that just couldn’t be. "It’s insanity," I pictured his common-sense telling him. So he preferred to ditch himself into whatever solid object he could find. Garage door. Front porch. Parked car. And why he didn’t like to ride I’ll never understand. He went for a ride with his dad one night to try to bolster his confidence and I neglected to tell his dad that hills should be avoided, especially going down hills at this juncture in the bike riding development. Needless to say, they went down a hill and my husband was surprised as Alex zipped passed him pedaling down the hill and sticking his feet out to the sides as he yelled "Wheeeeeeee" all the way. Then reality set in on my son, what to do now? Use the brakes? You jest! Slow down by coasting to a stop? Absurd! Crash your bike into the most dangerous spot you can find? Bingo! He purposefully crashed that little bike into a tiny, almost not there patch of grass between two driveways and a sidewalk which also had huge culverts in them. The Lord watched out for my son no doubt that day and thankfully we avoided stitches and an emergency room visit. I sent my son to my mother to have her teach him how to ride owing to the fact that I’d love for him to live.