June 27, 2006
The Birds and the Bees or is it The Bugs and the Buzzards?

When I started training for the Creating Solutions fundraising event, Ride, Joan, Ride! I knew I would learn many lessons. Some would be more philosophical than others, of course, but I was prepared for inner growth. I had no idea.

The other day I was riding along one of my favorite routes along the Columbia River. As I started down a nice decline going about 20mph, I heard, “Thwapp! Bzzzzzzzzzz bzzzzzzzz!” IT was the startling buzz of a bumble bee, stuck in my helmet vent. All I could think of was how much it was going to hurt when that bee stung me. I screeched to a halt, threw my helmet on the ground and…no bee. I began swatting at my head and out fell the offending bug, who had died keeping the foam from my helmet away.

Over the next 25 miles I forgot about my harrowing experience and began to slip into that peaceful rhythm that sneaks up on me as I wind through the small towns along the Sandy River (yep, new river now). It is shady and quiet with little waterfalls along the two lane “highway.” As I ride along I pass a welcoming aroma from "Tad's Chicken and Dumplings" and then the "Tippy Canoe" a little further along the way. The Sandy River is on the rise as the snow begins to melt off Mount Hood. It is a crystal clear river whose sound calls to you as you ride beside it on a hot day. All-in-all it is an Oregonian's paradise.

I was shaken from my tranquil state of mind when I turned the corner near the Troutdale Airport. I ride without my contacts (or glasses) which sometimes makes it hard to figure out what I'm seeing. It looked like a group of muddy toddlers were doing the hokey pokey in the middle of the street. No, it was a dozen or so Ospreys feasting on a good-sized road kill. This is a small road, folks. They're BIG birds – about 2 feet tall. They have sharp beaks. But I'm thinking they don't know I'm just a frightened girl recovering from a bumble bee attack. My plan is to ride very close to the curb as fast as I can and hope for the best. I approach and get that “look.”

The same one Andy gives me when I ask him to bring me the empty pop before he can consider something else. But they began to fly off. Two of them though, decided to play with me for what seemed like forever. They flew along in the same direction and swooped a little – not really AT me, more WITH me, though I did wonder if I was in a scene from Alfred HItchcock's "The Birds."

What are the lessons here? I'm not sure yet. Right now I think they are a test of my commitment to actually ride 200 miles in 2 days. But I strongly believe we all deserve good information, that is easy-to-use, free-of-charge, and widely available to the public. These are are the cornerstones to real change in communities and quality of life for all of us.

All that excitement in a 40 mile ride leading to raising money for Creating Solutions! I hope you will send the First Giving page (www.firstgiving.com/jmedlen) around to others or make a donation to Creating Solutions to keep the work going. Later in the summer we hope to launch a program for your child to showcase how charming and smart he or she is to all the world and raise money to support Disability Solutions and The Down Syndrome – Autism Information Center.

It's important work. We need your help and support to keep it up.

I think it's worth hanging out with the bugs and the buzzards!

Take good care,

Joan Guthrie Medlen, RD, LD, is the Project Director of Creating Solutions, Founding Editor of Disability Solutions, and the mother of two grown boys, one of whom has Down syndrome, autism, and celiac disease.

PS- Check my fundraising page and Volunteer Page for ways you can support the work of Creating Solutions.

©2006 Joan Guthrie Medlen
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The opinions shared in this Blog are not necessarily those of Creating Solutions or The San Francisco Foundation Community Initiative Funds