This morning has been a peaceful and relaxing end to a crazy week. I had the deadline for my 5th and final VCFA packet, a deadline for my workshop submission (15 pages out of 20 was all I could manage), and a deadline for my own student’s end of semester reports. My husband was gone for the third week on business, my sons had events each night, and son #1 sprained his ankle and ended up on crutches after a trip to the doctor. I said crazy, right.

Today, I woke at my weekday time (5:45) and hopped right out of bed. The sky was a beautiful cloudless blue and I wanted to bike. Leaving my husband in the bed, I dressed, pumped up the tires and started out of the house only to run back inside for a jacket. Blue, sunny, June skies do not especially mean warmth in Maine and when you are on the bike it is colder. The light breezes felt stiffer on the ride but the quiet roads and beautiful morning light was wonderfully worth it. Tiny yellow buttercups filled the fields along Flying Point road, and the occasional whiff of balsalm pine always gives me an energy boost. I passed a few other hardy Saturday morning riders but not many.

Tomorrow morning, I’ll bike the same roads in the Bicycle Coalition of Maine’s "Women’s Ride." I’m not sure if you can still sign up or do same-day registration but if you are interested, follow the link.   On the end of my loop I detoured to Mister Bagel, picked up a dozen and rode home. It was certainly not a training ride, I’m pretty slow these days covering about 13-15 miles in an hour, but the sense of freedom and release I feel when I’m alone on my bike is tremendous.

At home, I cut fresh chives from our garden, and served my hubby fresh, hot coffee, and bialy & chive cream cheese as he hustled out the door with son #2 for a baseball game. Now I’m sitting on my screen porch and enjoying the view of our neighbor’s field and listening to son #1 play the piano. Peace.