1 mile to go

two weeks ago I stole a sign.

it’s now propped by my desk, reminding me to hold firm, be tenacious, keep on my path.   it doesn’t bother me that I stole this sign, abandoned as it was, and it brings a smile to my face each time I look at it; I therefore think I did the right thing.

background:  I first saw this sign 5 or 6 weeks ago while I was riding my bike.  it was attached to a traffic cone, posted there by organizers of a cycling event called Wildflower Pedalfest, a women-only (I’ll delve into this topic another time) organized ride.  riding with friends, I happened to be on the same road as this ride, and encountered this bright pink, boldly lettered sign a scant mile from the top of a steep climb:

1 Mile to Go

underneath the words was an outline of a female riding a bike, the wheels 12-petaled flowers.

my clairvoyant, clairaudient friend kat has, at times, described the place I am in my life as being a spot where I’ve come 999 miles, with just 1 mile left to go.  this last, final mile often feels as difficult as the first 999, but it’s a time to hang in there, be tenacious and determined, and not give up.

so . . . four weeks post-wildflower-pedalfest, the sign still sitting there on its traffic cone, I decided to clean up the environment and bring this sign home with me.  I un-duct-taped it, slipped it under the back of my jersey (yes, it stuck out a bit and was slightly uncomfortable), and rode the next 18 miles home with my prize.

which is now propped above my desk, encouraging me.  telling me not to give up.  letting me know the top of the hill is coming, that I just need to stay on track and keep pedaling.  the even-better part of this story, the part that makes me grin, is that this sign was placed only a half-mile from the top of the climb.  a sign might tell you there’s a mile to go, but sometimes it’s really only half that distance.  which makes the victory of reaching the top a surprising delight.

1 mile to go.  that’s it.  guess we’d all better keep pedaling.