Days 6&7: Joy and Loneliness

Days 6 and 7: Sunnyside to Kennewick

Another joyous ride! The wind was at our backs, the scenery was beautiful, the roads were smooth, the traffic was light, the conversation pleasant, and our destination idyllic. Also, my bike and body are performing admirably. What more could you ask for?

Cindy.

It is lonely having this great adventure without her. She felt the emptiness before I left; I’m feeling it now. After sharing the joys and struggles of the last 27 years with her, she has become part of the way I rejoice and struggle. In a peculiar way, that only my body understands, the struggles of the last 27 years are part of this journey. She should be here; I feel a bit lost.

Kennewick has been spectacular. We’re staying at a park along the Columbia River. The one thing it doesn’t have-showers-were supplied by a local health club.

This morning we held our second rally, sponsored by the churches of the area. A group of refugees from Myanmar sang in their native language during the offertory. Very inspiring, though I didn’t understand a word of their song.

It is finally my time to serve on the Sweep Team. We’re divided up into about15 groups. Each day one of these groups helps with dinner preparation and clean-up, breakfast the next morning, site clean-up after everybody leaves, and then pulls up the rear of ride to make sure all the riders make the next destination.

Time to go; my dinner time duties beckon.