How Many Bathrooms?

As we near the end of the tour, my days are measured by how far I was able to ride that day.

Monday—36 miles

Tuesday—0 because of a very, very hilly route

Wednesday—47 miles (I think; I can’t remember exactly)

Thursday (today)—the entire route—67 miles!! 

I am so thankful for the healing in my leg.  My ankle is still very tender when I turn on it in a certain way, but biking is a straight, rhythmic movement that has loosened my leg and joints quite nicely.  This morning I had a bit of limp walking around camp, but tonight it is much better!  It’s amazing what a “little” biking can do!

Two nights ago we stayed in a campground where we had two showers and two toilets available and additional facilities 400 yards up a dirt path.  As I stood in line for the bathroom with a few other people, someone commented about the fact that we had two bathrooms for over 100 people while many homes have three bathrooms for just two people.  Without expressly saying it, we were wishing for more bathrooms in our camp that night.  I pondered, which of those two situations—two bathrooms for 100 people or three bathrooms for two people—is more “wrong?”  Sea to Sea makes us think about things differently.  It didn’t take long for me to realize that I live in a house with three bathrooms and three people. 

Tonight we are in a city park with a swimming pool, but there are no children’s voices filtering through the chain-link fence.  The pool is closed.  I heard the pool has been closed ever since they ran out of chlorine a few days ago.  Many of us feel the disappointment that we can’t enjoy the swimming pool after today’s hot ride.  Some voice it more than others.  My antennae have been very alert to things which reveal a sense of entitlement.  Harold, a member of my small group on the tour, said that wherever there is a sense of entitlement, God is not #1.  That’s a bold statement; but I think there is truth in it.  We all know this sense of entitlement is easier to hear in someone else than in ourselves, but it’s there in all of us.  I hear it in myself, if not in my spoken words, then in my thoughts.  Try listening to yourself from an objective point of view and see what you hear.

A Disaster Relief Services team from World Renew greeted us at one of our SAG stops yesterday.  It was so encouraging to have people with us who volunteer directly on the front lines of one of the partner organizations with Sea to Sea.  After initial hellos, someone said, “Wait, are you the lady who broke her leg?  I’ve been reading your blog and so has Virginia Bouma!”  Whoa.  That’s a name from the past!  We taught with Virginia in the mid-80s in Visalia, California.  Here’s a shout out to anyone from Visalia who might read this!

I’ll never know who most of you are who are reading this blog, but once again, thanks for joining us on Sea to Sea in this way.  If you have not yet made a donation, feel free to do so by clicking here.