Absent minded ramblings of a pillion rider!

Today I spent most of the day trying to make some sort of organisation out of the chaos we are living in at the moment! Chris went to help a friend doing some building work, he returned home about 5 and said we're off for a bike ride to Willingham Woods. This is a well known bikers spot with a hut that sells hot drinks. So I donned my bike gear which makes me look and feel like Michelin man, but safety first right! As we set off I get a buzz of excitement, which very soon turns into a feeling of tranquility. When on the back of the bike I cannot be contacted by phone and I have a break from the world. As we speed up the only sound I hear is the wind whistling through my flip face helmet. It can be noisy but it's almost a soothing sound likened to White noise. I started thinking how long have I been going on motorbikes? Well my first memory was going on the back of my dad, I would be about 4 and a half, my dad used to pick me up from school on his Yamaha step through Scooter. I would just hang on to my dad, as I recall it was before helmets were legal in the UK, which was in 1973. Today I would never consider not wearing a helmet, the only time Chris and I have not worn a helmet is following a funeral corsage of a fellow biker, the police even gave us an escort and told nobody to put helmets on but we were following a horse and carriage at about 10-15 mph. Today was the perfect day to be on the motorbike, it was sunny and fairly warm, the verges were lined with golden yellow daffodils and the sky was clear. Normally while on the back of the motorbike I make pictures in the clouds, once I saw a cloud formation which looked like The Starship Enterprise! I wish I'd taken a photo lol. I love sitting back and taking in the scenery, although often it is a flash past. Lincolnshire boasts some of the best biking roads in England, I live close to the Lincoln Wolds, they are the highest point on the east coast between Yorkshire and Kent. They are full of rolling green hills and arable farming, and when on the high point give outstanding views. Getting on the back of a motorbike requires a lot of trust in the rider as your life is literally in their hands, on the back of Chris I completely relaxed. I once even fell asleep coming back from Scarborough. As we twist and turn along the country lanes I am very aware of the peace I get from being on the back, I do not need to concentrate on staying upright as my body bends and moves with the bike. I notice a field of Friesian Cows and think how lovely it is to see them roaming free grazing on the grass, in spite of the smell of the fresh country air! On the motorbike you do get a sense of feeling more at one with nature. We stopped at Willingham Woods, this is close the the race course at Market Raisen famous for Horse Racing. The town has lots of houses built in the style of Tudor times! We stand chatting, usually the men talk about motorbikes and I people watch, this is one of my favourite past times. I noticed a family with five children the first child who obviously was not related was nice and slim and looked healthy. The sibling however siblings however were all very obese. One of the girls face, she was about 8, was so overweight that her skin looked very red and shiny, in 15 minutes she ate 2 hamburgers and a packet of potato chips then a high sugar drink. This saddened me seeing this, as parents are we not meant to do the best by our kids! I had to turn away as I could not stand to see it any more! Getting back on the bike to return home the sky was beautiful, the sun was starting to set, all the way home it was like we were chasing it before it disappeared. It truly was a lovely night. Just coming out of Brigg I looked up and saw a plane with a long vapour trail, I got a warm feeling thinking this time in 6 weeks we will be setting sail for our annual low carb cruise. As we entered our town and stopped at the 3 way traffic control at roadworks I was acutely aware that my brief respite had ended. My irritation returned as we waited what seemed like an eternity, oh well it was nice while it lasted. We came to the top of the hill we come down to reach home and I looked at the wonderful view, the sun was just setting and there was a light mist over the ground in the distant fields. This made the view even more fantastic and I looked across the expanse in awe and though what a beautiful country we live in and what a wonderful way to spend a couple of hours on a Sunday evening. I am truly blessed.