A love letter to Bike & Build
In May 2023, an organization that changed my life closed its doors. Bike & Build was a nonprofit that organized cross-country cycling trips to raise awareness for road safety and affordable housing. The mark we left felt real. The mark it left on me is equally palpable, even 9 years later. Here are a few final words and memories on my Bike & Build experience that I wrote during its sunsetting era.
We showered at community pools, ate spaghetti out of ziplock bags, smelled more roadkill than I care to remember, and didn't smell all that better ourselves...
Each day, a different challenge. Gorges, mountains, disappearing roads. heat, headwinds, horseflies, power lines. thunder storms, skirting semi-trucks, stray dogs. personal demons, social anxiety. pain, fear, loss, grief.
Each day, a different gift. Hitting 50 mph for the first time descending into Parsons, WV. Horses running alongside us at sunrise in Paris, KY. Hammock sleeping under the stars in Capital Reef. That sunset at Swasey's Beach. The liberating solitude of the Loneliest Highway in America. The relief of seeing the words “% grade” at any hilltop. The joy of jumping into any body of water: a river, a reservoir, and, eventually, an ocean...The euphoria of dinner after 96 miles in the desert. Morning route meetings. Goodwill vintage. And the rib-tearing laughs of 15 teammates skinny dipping and unanimously discovering how miraculously shallow Lake Tahoe is...As well as, watching a teammate play with a baby whose family we were building a house for. The sense of protection I felt sleeping in Church pews. A teammate urging me to not give up when I started to cry, and the way endorphins from delirious exhaustion made us laugh 'til we couldn't breathe. A new sunrise greeted us each morning, a new community welcomed us home each night. The kindness of so many strangers and the awe of so many star filled skies in between. Feelings amplified x 30 irreplaceable hearts. Hard to imagine, powerful to feel, impossible to forget.
On August 14, 2016, I plunged myself into the freezing Pacific ocean with one chipped tooth, a minor concussion, a leg scar, 16 days of service, the generosity of my donors and 58 American towns, 28 strangers that became family, a full heart, an increased respect for life, and a slightly less lost, slightly more evolved self having learned that:
Anything is possible if you take it one day, even one breath at a time,
Vulnerability and authenticity is the key to human connection,
Your capacity to endure expands your capacity for gratitude and kindness
The more you give of yourself, the lighter and freer you feel, and
Hardship alone is existing, but hardship together is living
I hope everyone gets the chance to experience something even remotely as special as what this NGO created. 20 years of building affordable homes, big thighs, and even bigger hearts. Thank you to all who supported us. Thank you, Bike & Build, for letting me be a part of the ride. It was epic.