Today, my son and I went on a bike ride. It was not the sun beating upon our shoulders that gave me pleasure. Nor was it the adrenaline rush as we reached the top of the hill, or the wind against our backs as we coasted downhill, catching our breath once again.
What gave me pleasure was that my twenty year old son wanted to go riding with his mother. Now, as the sun has set, I choose not to think about the fact that in a few months he will be in college twenty one hundred miles away. If I go there, the pleasure turns to sadness. Instead I bask in the simple pleasure of spending time with my son, doing something we have done since he was a little boy. And I thank God that we still enjoy spending time together.