The Present Revolution
8:34 am, by agil antI wanted to be a part of the pleasant revolution from the start. I had tried to ride the first day of the tour to Nevada city, hoping that this would satisfy my craving for adventure. I never made it. It would not be until two months later that I would take my first pedal on the pleasant revolution. Those first revolutions took place in Todos Santos a small beach town on the tip of Baja California. I had made my way down with Jeff. (A good friend from home) He had invited me to join him on his drive down baja. He would be meeting his family at the airport in Todos, where they would be staying for a month, and asked if I would like to join him. I had recently been asking the universe for some space. Some time away where I could get some clarity from the confusion in my life. So I could find my self again. I had found my self fogged in by my own stagnant energy. This had to change. So I said YES! Shortly after all my fears SCREAMED NOOOOO!
I had gotten to a place in my life where I was not being totally honest with myself. I felt like I was not living up to what was being asked of me. I was feeling controlled by my fears, and unable to find clarity. My foundations were crumbling and I could no longer hold it together. Change was happening whether I wanted it or not. So I finally broke down, accepted my fears, leaned into them and listened to what they had to say. I started to look at them as a tool to self discovery and growth. I started to open up and tried to be totally honest with myself. Slowly light started to creep back in.
I would be leaving in two weeks. during this time i must have found hundreds of ways to say no I shouldn’t go. But when the time rolled around and I was in the truck moving down the road all I could say was YES. At the last minute I was able to throw my bike in the truck. We were excited about riding our bikes around Todos for a month. We thought we might even run into the pleasant revolution. They were somewhere in Baja. As we drove I imagined what it would be like on my bike. Inspired by jeff’s stories of his bike trip from from mexico to the tip of South America, I imagined my self pedaling off into the distant hills. I kept telling myself that some day I would do a bike trip again. The journey down was great, we shared stories, laughed al ot, drank cervezas on sand dunes overlooking the pacific ocean. Woke up with a huge tarantula walking past my bed. Needless to say we both slept on top the truck the next night. I was excited to be in mexico for the first time in my life. I had always been a bit afraid of mexico. As a kid I remember hearing stories of banditos and mexican jails. That and the fact that I dropped out of spanish class after three weeks when I found out I didn´t need it to graduate. I took ceramics and played hacky sack instead. Sure could use those classes now. Kids STAY IN SCHOOL, or at-least make it to your spanish classes, because Mexico is amazing. Anyways we made it to Todos Santos in record time, we even drove at night after being told many times to NOT DRIVE AT NIGHT. I have one thing to say about driving at night in Baja. DON’T DO IT: Ride a bike instead. You will get to see so much more of what makes mexico so amazing.
Jeff dropped me off in Todos, he had to pick up his family at the airport. Shortly after I was picked up by debby who we were going to be staying with for the month. Turns out the pleasant revolution in not only in Baja but staying at the same house that we would be staying at. I was excited to see everyone and to be around friends from home. They would be staying through new years which was in a couple days. I got to tag along and jam out with the ninjas. New years was amazing, Fire dancing, stilt walking, great music, friends, great food. The revolution ended up staying longer than expected. (careful: Todos is a vortex you might enter but you may never leave) I had gotten pretty attached to the gang so I decided to ride the 60 k to La Paz where the revolution would take the ferry to the main land, and I would return to Todos. It was going to be a two-day ride. I packed all I could on to my short-tail bike. Thanks to jeff I even had a helmet and gloves. I left the rest of my stuff behind and pedaled out of Todos and without knowing it on to the pleasant revolution. I kept telling myself “A couple days away, riding that’s all you need” What started to happen as I leaned into my fears and stayed present in the moment is that my fears and ego struggled to stay in control. As I rode on all kinds of internal turmoil bubbled up to the surface. I had to continually accept and acknowledge these feelings and not allow them to control my reality. I kept breaking down and riding on through each and every moment. As i continued to surrender and open up to my true self, my fear stopped controlling my presence, and started to disappear. I was able to get to a place where I could ask myself what I truly wanted, without all my “STUFF” clouding my decisions. It became clear that I had already chosen to be on this tour, that I was living my dreams, honoring what was being asked deep inside myself. That my fears and ego and all my “stuff” is here as a teacher, ever present, asking me to look in, lean in, and listen to what i’m truly asking of myself. In honoring my true self I felt like I was stepping into being apart of the the whole, the one life force. I felt alive again, pleasantly revolving with each and very pedal.
The pleasant revolution has reminded me that when we open up and become responsible for our selves, when we honor our space in life and step up to what’s really being asked of us, when we listen into our fears and accept them as teachers and tools to self discovery, we become apart of the flow. We become apart of the now. I’m also reminded that right now quickly becomes yesterday. Expecting a moment in time to sustain and carry us on is only setting ourselves up for an emotional reminder. Awakening to the moment is continuous, a constant accepting and letting go. As soon as we attach our selves to a moment and expect it to provide us with continual support, we shut of to any new moments that arise. We become stagnant. The revolution has taught me to not be attached to a specific outcome, because when there’s 10 hungry tired bici lifstylists all with an attachment to a future plan we never make it very far. When we all surrender to the moment the most amazing and wonderful magic happens, and the next thing we know were on a secluded beach cracking fresh cocos, laughing, singing and getting along, all a part of the now, all a part of life.
So that’s how I came to be on the pleasant revolution, by leaning into what scared me, what angered me most. Listening deep inside to my inner voice. Recognising my emotions as teachers, here to help rather then destroy. Staying in the moment with whatever I feel, accepting it and moving on, not getting attached to feelings whether good or bad, but to just feel them, accept and acknowledge them and move on with the moment. We can all be a part of the pleasant revolution. Just grab a bike or some shoes and pick a day where all you do is wander around under your own power. Pack a lunch and water and snacks and chocolate, peanuts, and bring some tea and cookies and some really good french bread, corn nuts an apple maybe two and bananas got to have bananas and a huge cake with strawberries and fresh black berries and fresh cream and also grab a couple energy bars in case you get hungry. Then just head out unattached to going anywhere, in any direction. Just start pedaling or walking reminding yourself to stay right here right now. Keep asking yourself to let go and see what happens. You’ll be pleasantly surprised!
oh yeah bring some almonds too and dried fruit.
by TOBIN