That is no longer me. I now have a bike! And let me tell you, having my primary mode of transportation switch from walking to biking has made this city seem so much smaller! Now, instead of having to leave the coffee shop more than an hour before the start of class in order to insure I get there in time, I'm thinking that twenty minutes will suffice, maybe less seeing as it's all downhill.
Oh yeah. In case you haven't heard, there is a mountain in the middle of El Paso. This means that whichever direction you go, you are either heading uphill or downhill. I'm not used to this. I'm a prairie girl, used to being able to ride for miles without worrying about gravity's effect on my riding time. Now here I am, trying to ride bike in a city of slopes and slants. None of my previous experiences prepared me for this. I am used to being able to get from point A to point B the way I want in the time I plan for. My ride this morning did not reflect this. I left my home with the expectation of having a nice relaxing bike ride to the coffee shop. What actually occurred was that I had a nice bike ride to the main road, and then, as I turned towards the shop, and also the mountain, I was forced to hop off my bike to keep from rolling backwards down the hill. After a half hour of walking, pushing my bike up ahead of me, I arrived at my destination, tired, drenched with sweat, and ready to drop. I felt a bit like I had failed. I had planned to bike this morning and ended up walking. But in the end I did reach the destination, even if it wasn't totally as planned.
How often do I fall into this trap in life? Even in getting to El Paso. I knew that my end destination was to get to midwifery school. I had it all planned out how things were going to go: I'd finish my anatomy & physiology course over the summer and ace it, I'd work hard all winter to get enough money, then I'd head out in March so that I could be done the program sooner. ...what actually happened: I took all summer, and all winter, and part of spring to finish my a&p course and I almost failed it, I worked all winter and summer and still didn't make enough for my peace of mind, and I started in September, six months after I had planned to.
Though in the moment I had been discouraged that I hadn't lived up to my own expectations, now that I am here and experiencing it, I can see that I needed that extra 6 months to prepare, and I'm so grateful that I am able to be studying with the people I am. So how will I react in the future? Will I be discouraged, or will I have patience and see how God is going to work it out for good?
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