Because it will carry me. Because it will serve tirelessly, pedal by pedal, mile by mile, county by county. Because it will continue to support me through countless years to come. Even rusted and torn, battered and worn, it will carry me. It will invite me to travel any place I dream that is paved with road or wrapped in paths or trails. It will welcome me, redolent with rusty, rubbery memories of past adventures. It will invite me back into the cold; the crisp, refreshing, November cold that nips at my fingers as they clutch the handlebars and sends chilly rejuvenation down my spine. It will invite me back into the world of streets, of roads, of bridges, and of on your right, and only a couple hours, mom. It will invite me to experience the mystery of finding places I’ve never been before, and the satisfaction of mastering the memorization of entire counties. It will welcome me to beaches, to bayous, to seaside waffle houses, to vintage shops, to coffee stops, to duck ponds, to parks and lakes and piers. It will invite me to relish the freedom of unhindered independence, even for a fleeting few hours. The freedom to go where I please without any baggage other than a camera and a water bottle. It will fill me with dreams and memories and adventures nothing else is able to. It will complete me. It will complete me with metal, with oil, with dirt-caked tires and a mud-splattered frame. It will complete me with a long day of biking out in the chill, and coming home to a warm dinner and cozy evening with family. It will complete me with lazy autumn afternoon stops at the local cafés for a hot drink and extra calories. It will complete me with the pleasant and rare surprise of coming across a Great Blue Heron, or Roseate Spoonbill or grazing family of deer to quietly photograph and paint later. It will complete me with a clear cool cruise along the glittering bay. It will complete me with wheels and wings and the joy of flying down streets and new places. It will make sure I’m fit, and healthy and exercised. It will make sure I’m de-stressed. It will welcome me with the sounds of wind and cars breathing past my ears and through my hair. It will carry me through life, two wheels planted firmly on the ground and handlebars pointing straight towards the future with dignity and confidence. It will set me free.