Rock

May 9: 8 miles

This is a humorous picture. When taken, it was posted on the wall at Rock's bike shop with the caption, "What would Melanie have done without Sargent Rock to show her the way?" Rock is the owner of the bike shop, and I would call him the captain of our team. We don't really have a team, so I guess he cannot be our captain, but he is our fearless leader. During the summer, he leads a riding group from his shop on Tuesdays. For the first ten minutes or so, he weaves through the crowd, giving encouragement and tips to the new riders, and old as well. The last half of the ride, he is pushing the pack, making them work. In the winter, he is the coach (some call him Sensei). When riders are on the velodyne, he reminds the rider of their competitor's time and pushes everyone to ride to the best of his or her ability. He is a great guy.

Back to the picture. He is actually telling me, "They are right in front of you, go catch them." (I think Rock just wants to see a good race, so he baits everyone as they go by.) As I think of this picture, I realize that we all need a "Rock" in our lives, we all need someone to point the way. Sometimes, it is difficult to know which way to go, and even when we do know the right direction to go, sometimes it is hard to keep going. That encouragement from our "Rock" allows us to believe we are capable of our destination. We need that extra push that only our "Rock" can give. And when we are almost to our goal, our "Rock" knows just the thing to say to bait us to do our best.

Today I celebrate my "Rock." I have many "Rocks" in my life. Each gives encouragement and hope when I need it the most. I hope you know who you are. You point the way for me to go and are my light in the darkness. I am a better person because of each of you. I hope I can return the favor for you sometime. Thank you Rock.