Trust in each other, in others, and in God

The view from the stoker seat.

Eric

From the back of the bike there are several limitations, limited vision, no ability to steer and the curse of always being downwind. Our decision to take the road less travelled from eastern to western Baja has heightened my awareness of the level of trust Christie has in venturing on this road.

After several discussions with locals and expatriates while on the good road, the most common advice was go back 20 miles from San Felipe and take the road across the mountains to Ensenada. As we pushed further people said we could make it and it would be ¨A Hell of an adventure¨. We took the latter advice and ventured onto the road that has the dubious distinction as being the worst in the Baja. Our wide, lightly travelled paved road with a shoulder quickly turned into steep grades with loose sand and rocks. Our next four days were filled with hills, rocks, sand and washboard all accomplished at an average speed of 4.5 mph.

One step at a time, up from the sea of Cortez.

After being relatively stable and having good control for the first 2,500 miles of the trip, our rocky road brought about our first falls (5). Each fall was a slow motion can´t catch the bike and hold it up experience with the same result, lying on our sides. Each was an opportunity to test Christie´s trust in me as she choose to climb back on and re enter the the perilous world of the stoker seat.

Christie

Ahhh yes....Trust! It is the word of the day. Eric is doing an incredible job in finessing ´ol Jojo through the terrain and trucks. It takes significant concentration and awareness in the midst of fatigue and heat. As we walked down the street to reload on groceries, he noticed himself looking in his rear view mirror, despite him not wearing his helmet! We are reading the book The Love Dare by Kendrick, in Chapter 14, they write about the ¨timeless quality, class and dignity¨of the work honor. It goes on to say that to honor someone means to give them respect, talk to them with clean language, be courteous, listen to their words and give those words significance, and accommodate their needs. Honor acknowledges the value of someone, it´s a noble word and is true in marriage, within families, friendships, and the stranger we meet on the street. The word that forms the basis of honor is ¨holy¨, not meaning perfect, but special, unique, sacred, that no one else rivals in our heart. Eric and I now smile when we think of each other as holy. It has been a significant chapter for us, especially as we need to work as a team, trust in each other, and forgive the shortcomings.

When you don´t know where you will sleep or get your next drink of water, you end up relying on and trusting in the people around you A LOT! This is a humbling experience and an absolute opportunity to realize the good in humanity. Where are we going to tent....well how about next to the restaurant were Mary, the cook, offered when there was no place else in town....or how about at the beach with Mike and Trevor who flew in on their 4 seater airplane from California...or how about on Coco´s flat bed truck. Where are we going to get our next drink and food to eat....well how about from the ONLY 3 cars we passed in 2 days, ALL of who gave us some water they had with them....or how about the tortillas the Martin family, on a road trip from San Diego, shared with us. People are GOOD and it is an honor to grow from their thoughtfulness, kindness, and generosity. When we woke up this morning, NEVER did we think that an airplane would carry Mike and Trevor into our lives. An afternoon in their fishing boat in the sea of Cortez, telling tails of swimming with whale sharks, mountain biking with mountain lions in California, and Oh Yeah...eating Cliff bars.....¨Bad roads, Good people¨as Mike (Rt) says, couldn´t be more true. Coco, a double amputee from poor circulation issues, is full of determination and has a great heart. His place (and a lot of the road we took) is highlighted in the film Dust to Glory about the Baja 1000 race. The Martin and Gabby family from San Diego at Coco´s. What fun! A place to camp at Mary´s restaurant. We had good laughs when we told her we had traded our house and car for this ¨beautiful house and bike.¨Loco!

Eric

In then end, we continue to grow in our faith in and reliance on our Creator God. We find ourselves praying that we will have a place to stay, find the necessities of life, be safe and to know the people we meet (conocer is the Spanish word ¨to know¨and also is used when you meet people). When we look back at the previous day we are in awe of how we have been provided for and blessed by our meetings. Sometimes it requires taking initiative, like the night we stayed on the porch of a boarded up cottage, but always it´s a blessing.

Our sweet audience watched as Eric put some air in the tires.