Another year has come and gone and so many things have changed. Should I stay or should I go from the Home is something I ask every day. I miss it here but there's a lot of memories hiding in the corners that just aren't what they used to be. So much has changed. The days are long and the nights are forever.
But I went for a ride the other day and that's good I guess. Heading nowhere execpt somewhere. For some reason, I remember the whole world smelled of apples as I went along. Apples and old, musty summer; getting ready to finally give up the fight against the turn into fall.
As I often do, I took on the meanest hills I could find...still trying to out-ride my age and disposition. It was hot and muggy and predictably, my legs once again gave out on the last big climb. They're forever doing that and so I walked a while on funny shoes that were never meant for anything but pedals. Slogging along pushing the bike and trying to get myself back together seemed like a metaphor.
It all gets a little hazy when you're walking up the road with sweat and the sun dripping down in your eyes. The Man With the Hammer is nearby and he's laughing at your battle to keep your lunch where it belongs. Everything hurts and the top of the hill looks like the end of the world. Metaphors.
Eventually, the road flattens out a little as they always do and I can clip back into a wobbly semblance of a ride over the crest. I'll have a sore throat from gasping for air but at least there's a chance I'll make it home under my own power. I pick a dirt road for the last leg even though I know it'll rattle my eyeballs. This only because I also know it tends downhill and there's not much left for another climb. I'll take the shakes if I don't have to fight another hill. It'll be almost dark now that the days are shorter but I think the driveway is possible. Some things at least, never change.
The funny part is, I know I'll do this again no matter how much it hurts and keep doing it until I can't. I don't know what that means but I know it's true. And for now, I remember the smell of apples.
