Lessons From The Saddle Of My Bullet – Part 4

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This morning, as I sat down to write this week’s ‘Lesson From The Saddle Of My Bullet’, a concern popped into my head: I keep writing about motorcycle crashes or near misses as I rode my Royal Enfield Bullet through India. I thought that perhaps this time I should write about some of the happy experiences we had.

So, I tried to remember what I had learned from being at the top of the snow capped Baralachla Pass (the 2nd highest road in the world) or visiting the Tibetan monks in the highest village in the world.

Guess what? I couldn’t remember even one lesson I had learned from any of those times! A moment later, the lesson hit me on the head…

The times when I learned the most were not when I was admiring the view from the side of the road, but when I was riding my Bullet.

- It was when I was battling to keep the bike under control that I learned that ‘the faster you go, the smoother the ride’.
- It was when I almost got squished by concrete roadblock that I learned about relaxing.
- It was watching Adele get back on her bike after crashing in a river crossing that we learned about courage and determination.

BULLET LESSON #4: The journey is more important than getting to the destination.

On my first trip to Southern India, I spent 12 wonderful days with 150 bikers crossing India together. We rode in packs and before long, close friendships between us blossomed.

There were two ex-military guys on the trip who had arrived together and who approached each day like a race. They were always the first to cross the finish line and when we arrived hours later, they were sitting in the bar drinking waiting for us. I don’t think that they saw much of India, because they essentially spent eight hours a day racing through India to drink beer on their own! Needless to say, they were also the ones who complained the most. They were so focused on the destination that they forgot to enjoy the ride.

Think back to a time when you accomplished a worthwhile goal.
You probably invested a whole lot of your time and energy into achieving your goal.
Now, remember the moment when you actually accomplished your goal.
You probably felt euphoric for a minute or two or perhaps a day or two if it was a really big accomplishment, but then you moved on and continued life as usual.

I think that it is important to understand that the moment of achievement is usually a very short ‘peak experience’ in comparison to the time it took you to achieve your goal. Yet, so often we are so focused on ‘getting there’ that we forget to appreciate the beauty of the landscape we are traveling through and the thrill of being in the saddle.

Have you ever wished that success would just hurry up and happen? I know that I have.

To think that, however, is to be ignorant to the way nature works. A tree doesn’t just appear. It grows over time. In the same way, it is only when we leave our comfort zones and the wheels feel like they are about to fall off the bike, that we can soar to new heights.

If you are feeling frustrated that a goal of yours hasn’t manifested yet, know that this is life’s way of telling you that you need to grow some more. Give thanks for the tough times for they contain the lessons to grow you to where you want to go and most importantly, remember to enjoy the ride…

Till next time, may your saddle be lined with sheep skin,

Bruce

“The path to our destination is not always a straight one. We go down the wrong road, we get lost, we turn back. Maybe it doesn’t matter which road we embark on. Maybe what matters is that we embark.” – Barbara Hall.

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