Roadside

 I have been making a mental list lately of what I have been seeing on the side of the road and or right off the road:

  Ew: fish-on Samford Ave.   
      muscle milk bottles-on county roads
      beer and or wine cans and bottles (glass)-everywhere
      dead animals-everywhere, from squirrel to deer
      fast food containers-yes, everywhere
      soda cans-everywhere
      rope-here and there
      wood-planks
      gloves-out by Chewacla
      sad houses-lonely
      dogs-they bark and chase

 Pretty: sheep!-far out
         horses-everywhere in the country
         donkeys-out in Gold Hill
         flowers-everywhere
         beautiful houses-alive
         cats-out by Chewacla
         cows-in the country
         cyclists-on Ogletree :)encouraging
         clover
         Church signs
         gas stations-are good for water and potty breaks

The "pretty" list may have the same number of items as the "ew" list but the pretties make the rides worth it. Podcasts help a lot as well. I have been listening to sermons from Bethel Church in Redding, CA. They may be known for their worship, which is awesome, but they also are solid in Biblical teaching and spiritual creative excellence. I am currently reading "Dreaming with God" by the senior pastor at Bethel, Bill Johnson. There is a worship night with Bethel worship in Atlanta next Sunday night and Martin Smith-from Delirious? will be there too! We are thinking about going. 

 Cycling again, and this time more serious than ever, has brought back a lot of memories of the previous training days and races I have done. Thinking about the motivation behind each one and how happy I am doing endurance races. My heart is strengthened, my muscles are awake, and my stomach is calm. I began training for my first triathlon when I was 16, after a friend said she wanted to do one with me. I have recently had my first break up and wanted to do anything to get my mind off of the past. I also was not involved in any sport teams. I had done soccer in middle school but I did not love it. So we began training. One day she told me she was not going to do it and I decided to do it on my own. (Like the Little Red Hen)
Certainly, I did not do it alone, my family supported me and God allowed my body to train well. Race day came, my dad took me to Huntsville and really early in the morning I did it. I finished. I am not in it to win, just to do my best. I did that first sprint tri with a mountain bike... that malfunctioned on me.

  The second tri was a bit longer than the first and more professional. It was at Callaway Gardens and hot. My friend had let me use an old bike of her's and I "fixed" it up with arrow-bars and a new seat. I should have added a water bottle holder because my water bottle was lost on road during the race. After the race I had an orange and the acid hurt my stomach bad. All I wanted to do was sleep. My mother wanted to take me out to eat.

  On the third one, my mom, sister, Zach, and a friend came to Peachtree City. My friend and I did the tri together. I had my own road bike that I got for $100 from a lady that I swam with. It was a good race and I did feel up to eating Chick-fil-a.
During the Winter Olympics, the children I nanny asked me what sport I would do in the Olympics. I said triathlon-absolutely.
They asked me why and I told them...but then I realized that my last race was in 2009...and this was 2014. 5 years. I had done two mud runs in 2012 but not any swim, bike races. I had gone to the doctor after an injury in 2011 and he said that my feet were not made to run. I was sad but then encouraged because I loved to swim and bike WAY more than run. I had made myself run. 

  Now being out of school I saw the chance to do my first aquabike! On the first day of Summer, June 21st, in Newnan, Ga, I will compete.We updated my bike with new gears, a second water bottle holder, and an odometer. God has done a miracle in allowing me to do this sport, my heart murmur has never caused a concern in these years and that miracle is one of the reasons I race. It is worship.

         I dedicate this picture to the SWEETEST triplets ever! Our pastor's wife had a boy and two girls at the end of last year; they are growing so fast.I praise God for them. Whenever possible, I come over and hold them. I love their precious faces and their hero mother. What a privilege the Father has given us by letting us share in the beauty of their lives.

 [this picture was found while I looking for a sheep picture, to represent the ones I saw on the bike, but then it was TRIPLET sheep from New Zealand that won me over]