Just Pedal
At first I saw God as my observer, my judge,
keeping track of the things I did wrong, so as to
know whether I merited heaven or hell when I
die. He was out there sort of like a president. I
recognized his picture when I saw it, but I really
didn¡¯t know Him.
But later on, when I met God, it seemed as
though life were rather like a bike ride, but it
was a tandem bike, and I noticed that God was
at the back, helping me pedal.
I don¡¯t know when it was that He suggested
that we change places, but life has not been
the same since. When I had control I knew the
way. It was rather boring, but predictable. It was
the shortest distance between two points. But
when He took the lead, He knew delightful long
cuts, up mountains, and through rocky places at
breakneck speeds. It was all I could do to hang
on!
Even though it looked like madness, He said,
¡°Pedal!¡± I worried and was anxious and asked,
¡°Where are you taking me?¡± He laughed and
didn¡¯t answer, and I started to learn to trust. I
forgot my boring life and entered into the adven-
ture. And when I¡¯d say, ¡°I¡¯m scared,¡± He¡¯d lean
back and touch my hand.
He took me to people with gifts that I needed;
gifts of healing, acceptance and joy. They gave
me gifts to take on my journey. And we were
off again. He said, ¡°give the gifts away; they¡¯re
extra baggage, too much weight.¡± So I did, to
the people we met, and I found that in giving I
received, and still our burden was light.
I did not trust Him, at first, in control of my life.
I thought He¡¯d wreck it; but He knows bike se-
crets, knows how to make it bend to take sharp
corners, knows how to jump to clear high rocks,
knows how to fly to shorten scary passages. And
I am learning to shut up and pedal in the strang-
est places, and I¡¯m beginning to enjoy the view
and the cool breeze on my face with God as my
delightful constant companion.
And when I¡¯m sure I just can¡¯t do anymore, He
just smiles and says,
¡°Pedal!¡±
(Author Unknown)
The Reading Room
2015 June
Pg 5 - The Sunshine Express
Treasures From The Inbox
furthering the cause of Father¡¯s Day, there is far
greater acceptance for Ms Sonora Louise Smart
Dodd¡¯s contribution.
Inception of the Father¡¯s Day took place in Sono-
ra¡¯s mind when she happened to hear a Mother¡¯s
Day sermon in 1909. Sonora, who was 27 then,
had begun to recognize the hardships her father
must have gone through while bringing up his six
children alone. When Sonora was 16, her mother
had died during childbirth. Sonora¡¯s father a Civil
War veteran by the name of William Jackson
Smart raised six children including the newborn
on his own. Sonora questioned that if there is a
day to recognize mothers then why is not there a
day to honor fathers?
The noble idea of celebrating Father¡¯s Day be-
came quite popular in US so much so that Presi-
dent Woodrow Wilson approved of the festival in
1916. President Calvin Coolidge too supported
the idea but it was President Lyndon Johnson
who signed a Presidential Proclamation declar-
ing the third Sunday of June as Father¡¯s Day in
1966. Then in 1972, President Richard Nixon
established a permanent national observance of
Father¡¯s Day to be held on the third Sunday of
June.
If you get email, you
get stuff. Sometimes
it is spam, sometimes
it is a true gem.
Here is one of those
gems worth sharing:
Father¡¯s Day:
How It Began
Eight: Speed isn¡¯t
always an advan-
tage. The snails were
on board with the
cheetahs.
Nine: When you¡¯re
stressed, float a
while.
Ten: Remember, the
Ark was built by am-
ateurs; the Titanic
by professionals.
Eleven: No matter
the storm, when you
are with God, there¡¯s
always a rainbow
waiting.
Now wasn¡¯t that
nice?
(Author Unknown)
Lessons Learned
from Noah¡¯s Ark
A Father is one whose daughter marries a man
who is vastly her inferior, but then gives birth to
unbelievably brilliant grandchildren.
- Anonymous
Watching your daughter being collected by her
date feels like handing over a million dollar
Stradivarius to a gorilla.
- Jim Bishop
A father carries pictures where his money
used to be.
- Author unknown
For Father¡¯s Day we got my dad a t-shirt that
says ¡°Do Not Resuscitate.¡± He wears it whenever
my mom takes him to the ballet.
- Greg Tamblyn
Fatherhood is pretending the present you love
most is soap-on-a-rope.
- Bill Cosby
On Father¡¯s Day, I¡¯m doing something for my dad
that he¡¯s wanted for years.
I¡¯m getting a job.
- Melanie White
Remember: What dad really wants is a nap.
Really.
- Dave Barry
Everything I need to know about life I learned
from Noah¡¯s Ark.
One: Don¡¯t miss the boat.
Two: Remember that we are all in the same
boat.
Three: Plan ahead! It wasn¡¯t raining when
Noah built the Ark.
Four: Stay fit. When you¡¯re 600 years old,
someone may ask you to do something really
big.
Five: Don¡¯t listen to critics; just get on with
the job that needs to be done.
Six: Build your future on high ground.
Seven: For safety¡¯s sake, always travel in
pairs.
All About Dad
Father¡¯s Day is a
beautiful festival that
acknowledges and
appreciates the im-
portant role played
by a father in raising
the child and con-
sequently building a
stronger society.
The tradition of cel-
ebrating Father¡¯s Day
as seen today origi-
nated in the last cen-
tury. Though there
are several people
who are credited for