I praise you, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made.
    Wonderful are your works;
that I know very well. – Psalm 139:14

“The bicycle is a curious vehicle. Its passenger is its engine.” — John Howard

A couple of weeks ago I turned 70 (“My life at 70“). Then, a few days later, I took my first bicycle ride in more than 30 years.

It was hard. I could not nearly keep up with the others, I often had to slow down and coast, and I almost quit a number of times. However, I kind of enjoyed it and I determined to give the idea of riding a fair shake before parking the idea – or chaining it to the fence!

Sine then I have ridden ten out of eleven days. I’m riding a minimum of twenty-five minutes and alternating between an easy ride one day then pushing it the next. Day seven I repeated the group 10K and the difference was noticeable.

Just to be clear, I am not at the point where I am ready to jump in and say that bike-riding is a key part of my exercise regimen going forward. Walking is essentially free and bicycling requires an investment. But the fact is I need to do more than simply walk the dog.

I guess what I’m saying is that 70 has got my attention, and I realize I can no longer coast on natural fitness and favorable metabolism. It’s like going to college and realizing that simply “being smart” is not enough, or joining the praise orchestra and discovering “I’m pretty good at guitar” is only Step One.

So in college I started going to the library and attending learning labs, and at church I took the music home and showed up for rehearsals. I am evidently not going to be able to coast through my 70’s either.

It doesn’t pay the rent:

Here’s the thing about any kind of “I was born with it” ability: outside of learning and practice and the application of a little hard work, natural giftedness doesn’t pay the rent.

“But I’ve always been an athlete!” Maybe, but if I don’t learn how to swing the golf club properly then the ball is going into the water every time!

So now we’re talking about golf? No. Just the fact that the principle remains, regardless of what I am doing. Especially now that I am 70.

I think what has my attention right now is this sense of dissonance or incongruence between this natural joie de vivre that has always buoyed me along, and the tell-tale signs of aging that threaten to cramp my style at every turn.

If I want to stay vital – and I do – then I need to be more deliberate. More intentional in marshaling my resources rather than merely relying on my gifts.

Physically? Oh yes, that much is clear. Intellectually? Keep learning, keep writing, keep teaching, keep creating. Spiritually? You’d better believe it, I am not taking anything for granted.

There you have it. Less than two weeks into the seventies and already running scared! No, not scared so much as aware of how precious this all is, and how important it is to lean into my thankfulness by taking care of the gifts I have been entrusted with.

Peace, friends, and more peace. Always – DEREK