I think we’ll be very happy together

People in abusive relationships often cannot see how they are being abused.  It’s not until long after they have left the relationship that they realize what was really going on.

I have come to realize that my Suzuki C109 Boulevard was trying to kill me.

Now that I’m becoming accustomed to another level of motorcycle relationship, I see the C109 for what it was; a mad gorilla with a rocket lodged up it’s butt.

Sure, it was exciting to feel your head snap back every time you rolled on the throttle at 70 to pass the biker who thought he was passing you.  And yes, it was a particular thrill to feel sweat drip down from the brow of your helmet as you leaned all your weight off the left side of the saddle, gripped the bars in white knuckle panic, and counter-steered while praying God would allow you to make the turn without taking out the row of mailboxes.  But still, even with all of that amazing adrenaline rush available to me, I understand now that my true needs were not being met.  We had something, yes.  But what we had isn’t what I need now.

I’ve met someone else.  She’s beautiful.  She’s refined.  She’s sophisticated.  It’s true, she can’t provide that smell of burning oil splashing out of the air cleaner at 120 MPH, but I’ve come to realize that wasn’t healthy for me.  She fulfills me in a much deeper way.

People ask to take her picture when I stop at gas stations.  Passengers in cars give me a thumbs up when I stop at a red light.  She glides around corners like an Indian maiden lightly touching her moccasined feet to the mossy rocks as she floats downhill on a mountain trail. She is not a gorilla.  She is an Indian.

This weekend I will officially welcome her into my life and introduce her to my friends.  This will be a marker of relationship much more official than the simple signing of a legal title, or the mundane paying of property taxes.  This momentous day will begin with a ritual bathing ceremony with many micro-fiber towels and a good coat of wax.  Then later, a shared celebratory meal and beverage with some friends, followed by a burning of some finely rolled Cuban incense.  Then the blessings on my new ride will be spoken and she will be officially mine.

I’ve moved on.  This is the relationship that I need right now.