After making sure the bike was roadworthy, I replaced my heavy pack (80 pounds), and bungee-corded it all back onto the rack. At that moment, I pulled my water bottle for a swig to quench my thirst. As I sat on the piling of the guard rail, that same SUV rolled to a stop across the highway. A kid jumped out with a pizza box and two cans of lemonade. He ran across the highway toward me.
"My dad said you might like some refreshments," he said. "He remembers when he rode his bicycle across the country after finishing college. He still talks about it. It was the best time of his life. He's got an 8"X10" photo of him and his buddies celebrating on the Atlantic Ocean right on his desk. Every day he sees it, that photo, it lights him up."
"Well thank you," I said, as I waved to the entire family. "Good for your dad! I bet he's got lots of stories to tell."
"Yes sir," the boy said. "He tells them around the campfire when we go camping. Somehow, he always comes up with a new one that makes us laugh."
The boy crossed back over the road. Everyone in the car smiled. "Safe travels," the father said. I waved, "Back at you!"
(My touring bike loaded with gear and an empty pizza box filled with kindness and memories of the goodness of folks around the world.)
They drove off. I sat there realizing that my two buddies were eating dinner and drinking beers up ahead, but as I sat there munching on the MOST incredible and best-tasting pizza of my life. To this day, it will be the greatest pizza that I ever ate. Why? Because it was given to me on a very hot day in Vermont on a very lonely road. It rewarded me for fixing my flat tire. It tingled my taste buds like no other pizza because of the kindness of other human beings. It was given with love, trust and a sense of connectedness that all of us humans carry in our hearts.
When I finished, I placed the empty pizza box on top of my pack. With the last gulp of lemonade, I flattened the two cans to be recycled when I reached the next town. I remounted my bike Condor and pedaled east with a big smile across my face and an even bigger one across my spirit.
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