Dragon's Tail

Last week I rode the Dragon's Tail on my 2009 Softail Custom Harley Davidson. It is a road through the Smokey Mountains that has 318 curves in an 11 mile stretch. And these are not long winding turns, but short, tight, and sometimes banked turns. This road is designed for the sport bike and sports car, not necessarily for a big ole' HOG and two riders. However I plunged into it, with Catherine on the back, excited to test my abilities. I have to admit there were several times when my heart skipped a beat, several times when my foot peg scrapped the ground and many times when I felt Catherine tense up behind me--but we made it! And I was glad Catherine was on the back. She has become an accomplished passenger. She leaned into some of the turns with me which helped me make the corner instead of ending up a statistic. She knew when to pinch me or yell at me for going too fast which reminded me to stay humble instead of ending up a statistic. She was also there at the end to rejoice with me over such an exciting ride! Its great having a partner.

God knows this. The story of Adam and Eve is the story of partnership. Saul needed Samuel. David needed Nathan. Peter needed Jesus. Paul needed Barnabas. And so it goes...(I love Kurt Vonnegut). We need a partner in life to help us lean into the curves life throws at us. We need a partner in life to help remind us when we are being tempted to do something foolish. We need a partner in life to rejoice with. A partner doesn't have to be a spouse. It can be a friend. It can be a relative. It can be a parent or a child. But we can't do this thing called life alone...we're just not designed for it.