bananas

I'm pretty sure I've written about bananas before. about how they're called the perfect snack: full of vitamins and minerals and energy, completely contained in their own hygienic package.
about how great they are for you when you're cycling: quick energy, lots of potassium.
about how that would be great if only I liked them.
about how I eat them anyway, while cycling, because they're so great.

but today I'm sharing a different banana story.

it's taoist; it's from alan watts' what is tao, and I find it a perfect fit for cycling-taoist-buddhist-zen-like me. and hopefully, for you, too.

a lot has been said about the process, the journey, the path to a destination.
that the important piece--the meaningful part, the beauty of it--is in this process, not in the end result.
that we often think we'll be happy when we reach a specific goal, but what we find is that the most meaningful aspects of reaching that goal were the experiences we had along the way.
alan uses a banana to describe this concept, and I love him for it:

...if we begin to think about our goals in life as destinations, as points to which we must arrive, this thinking begins to cut out all that makes a point worth having. It is as if instead of giving you a full banana to eat, I gave you just the two tiny ends of the banana--and that would not be, in any sense, a satisfactory meal.

although I love the top of the hill, it's the work, the scenery, the overcoming of doubt, the smells, the rush of wind, the smiles and waves from fellow travelers along the way, it's all of these things that bring me satisfaction, that make me appreciate my destination even more.
the ends of the bananas aren't so great: even to me, one who doesn't care for bananas, I realize that the best part of it is the middle, and that's the part I'm supposed to enjoy.

today as I pedal up a hill not only will I thank the earth for gently lifting me up higher and higher into the sky, I will appreciate every single bite of my banana.
and my journey.