Around the Corner

My legs are churning, heart racing. This asphalt path is good for speed. Acorns already litter the smooth course and the evening light falls faster into shade. I round a sharp corner and gasp so loudly that the man in front of me turns to see if I have fallen. I cannot take my eyes off the ball of fire dipping into the sky. It falls so fast, too fast for me to get a glimpse of it around the next bend. I content myself with the one moment of sheer beauty that I have witnessed, the brightest of red against the backdrop of blue sky and jagged trees.

Just around the corner. It could be my mantra these days. I am on the brink. “It” with a capital I is just around the corner. I don’t kid myself. It is not always so glamorous as a perfectly setting sun. Last week I rounded a bend on my bike and almost got clocked by the Superintendent of schools dragging himself home after a long day. A few days before that I scared the hell out of a deer and myself when I hit a curve too quickly.

But just around the bend works for me. And I’m an optimist, so I imagine they’ll be more royal sunsets than near collisions. So many lessons for me these days. So many things just around the corner. And they are not lost on me.

It’s the getting on the path that does the most good. Being there. In the moment.. Moving forward to see what might be there. Breathing deeply. Crunching acorns.

And waiting to see what is up ahead, around the next bend.