My Life in a Bin

Helena Montana, 50 miles today. Interviewed for Beartooth NBC news about Venture Expeditions


"Grain must be ground to make bread;
    so one does not go on threshing it forever.
The wheels of a threshing cart may be rolled over it,
    but one does not use horses to grind grain."-Isaiah 28:28

Kid things as of late: Being tired. Fear of being tired. Mental complaints about miles ("It's not about the miles, it's about the smiles.") Wanting answers to questions while not being fully checked into the conversation to begin with. I blame the lack of praise and the increase in wanting on my exhaustion.


God wants us to ask though.


I wake up with reminders of inabilities to do each minute, each passing moment, on my own. I wake up distracted by exhaustion. As grace pours over me like milk and honey. I can't help but get choked up with a prayer from a host church or a smile when a teammate, family, becomes vulnerable in the midst of this journey.


I struggle with my selfish bones. They creek and grown while being ground and threshed daily for family whom I've never met. (It's about Hope and Justice.)


My life in a bin...
My life in a nutshell...
My life in a seed waiting to burst open with Gods plans as He continues to water and sew others into me, building upon this garden.
My life in a helmet...
My life on a bike...
Forward pedal stroke, pedal stroke. Jaw scraping pavement from things still very unknown to me.
My clips...
My feet...
This is my journey but not really...
Merely the will of Gods journey through me...


...Just Keep pedaling

I'm Going on a Picnic

104 miles and 3,470 in elevation gain...That was just day three but there is more to be said about the last 48 hours in general.

OUR plan was to ride 67 miles yesterday but clearly other plans were already set. And all 11 of us are rather content in that. Seeing such amazing sites, Elevation gains and creation bursting all around. 104 miles was nothing.

We played games to distract us from the noise of trucks and the pains of our tents...

I'm going on a picnic and I'm bringing:

Apricots, Bananas, Carrots, Dragonfly's, Elephants, Fungus, Grapes, Huey Lewis and the news CD, Igloo, Jessica, Klondike Bar, Llama, Muskrat, Nicholas, Octopus, Pizza, "Cue-ball", Rocket Ship, Slurpees,  Triskets, Underwear, Volvo, Water, Xylophone, Yaks wool, Zebra Cakes.

Through out the day we talked to various people. One of which was named Erma. A teammate needed to use the bathroom and we were in the middle of NO WHERE in irrigation land. She was planning on peeing around a corner but I felt like this was an amazing opportunity to talk to someone, somewhere in which we had never been. We walked past the gate, got pounced by a dog and introduced ourselves to the this woman who was gardening. Her name was Erma. We explained what we were doing and we were hoping she would let us use her bathroom. She was so excited. We spoke for a good 15 minutes about the cause. As we left she gave us her blessing and I was filled with joy.

We hit head winds and tail winds but mostly heart winds. Sitting on the side of Soap Lake and being incredibly blown away by where God was moving our legs. Where he is carrying us to. We sat on a cliff side and just looked out. "I am just so glad to be here." 80 miles into nowhere, and we are so glad to be here. One of the most joyful things I've witnessed thus far.

50 miles into our 96 mile ride to Spokane WA, we spotted lightning and our day of riding was over. We rode the rest of the 46 miles into Spokane where the sun ended up shinning again. We are staying at Jacob Well. A church that reaches out to a lot of international families and refugees. There are actually refugees living upstairs who are from Burma. Burma refugees are one of the places in which we are on the road to raise money for! it all continues to fit together.

Attractions, nails in tires, lightning storms and laughing. There is so much to be crammed into just a few hours... It's only just begun.

Elevation Gained

Cascade Mountains through screaming legs... The screaming wasn't as loud as it will be tomorrow.

We awoke in a high school wrestling room at 5:30 am West coast style. Sleepy eyes but excited hearts we began to stack bins and work on the routine that is sure to follow in the next couple of weeks. Jeff our host whose nick name is Santa...Guess why, brought us donuts and blessed us with the love that poured out of his jolly eyes.

We headed out at 7am after a prayer and smiles. 79.1 miles one of our hardest days to conquer for the entire ride. The majority of the ride would be up the Cascade mountains. Welcomed in at breaks with smiles and high spirits. You notice that I use smile a lot. It is true that again God has blessed me and knows my needs. These people I am blown away by how lovely they are. I am blown away by how beautiful they are and to see their hearts on this journey. with only 4 days into the trip.

The roads were gradual, we gained a total of a little over 5,000 ft in elevation. And our spirits soared higher as each snow capped mountain and water fall continued to steal our words and breathe. I am amazed each hour that passes with how God created these paths and knowing how much we would adore and be in awe of  these things built around us. perfectly shaped with His mighty hands, bursting with love and light.

I counted pedal strokes, 1...2...3...4...5...6...7...8...9...10... I got to 1,000 and realized I was some place new. I realized that this summer would be more than just a ride. More than just seeing things from a different side, two wheels or states. There are things that we realize when growing up. A constant wondering of when we are going to feel older. When do we move into adult hood and out of this "I'm so young" Nonsense. Perhaps drastic things need to happen in order to properly move from one place to another. Perhaps this is that bridge.
These next few weeks will tell. But for now I have much to enjoy literally every moment not just to look forward to.

Things we can be looking forward to are the 86 miles to be blown through tomorrow and the 90-something on Wednesday.
I am so blessed and so so thankful that God has chosen me and these individuals perfectly. The dynamics, the stories, histories and hearts He has built. I am so blessed.

Please pray for continued strength, endurance and fire to be ignited in our hearts and to keep burning hard through the long hours and hard rides. The harder the more joyful.

Go Adventure...

Brisk

After some cat naps on air planes and an awesome van ride to an awesome host church, we are in Seattle.

We didn't waste time. excited we put together bikes and then sat and hung out. I am very thankful for the non rushing atmosphere currently. I am very much feeling a bit on edge. And will be completely honest when I say I accidentally even grabbed my hip and slightly freaked out when I didn't feel the radio that has been glued there for the last two years.

It makes it more real to be sitting in a room with 12 bicycles. Yes there will be 11 of us beginning on Sunday, meeting up with 2 more along the Midwest.  13 all together. The number is smaller than what was announced. But my belief is that small packages hold big punches. It has already been made clear to me that this group has got major punch.

We have a training ride and pictures in Seattle on Saturday and we begin our trek through the Cascades on Sunday.

It's cold... Very cold.

My heart and soul are warm!

Vegas Baby

I'm sitting in Vegas...

And I have been reflecting upon the power of prayer. It calms the nerves and calms the heart. While at the same time moving it to the brink of bursting at the seams with joy. I have had such a blessed couple of days. Who am I kidding... A blessed couple of years.

Things I love as of late:
-Morning meeting prayer time
-Prayer requests
-Praises
-Questions
-Bike rides
-Prayer circles
-Tears of joy
-Words of encouragement
-Joyful tears in exit interviews
-Laughter in a car at 3am
-Hearty hugs
-Prayer via telephone
-Gods timing (always)

This morning I felt as though I was departing for California all over again. So unknown and yet extremely exciting. A new adventure. More people whom God has placed (or currently placing) in my life and I can't wait to embrace them. To know them. To learn them.

I've said in the past that I've never really seen a clear direction on where I am supposed to go. But this morning it is more clear than ever.

 Seattle Washington.

It's Normal.

When this world shakes and life feels like it's full of twists turns, corners and hedges. It is simply an illusion. I mean what we think to be absolutely crazy and absurd on this earth. Things we get frustrated because of lack of ability for explanation... Why do we feel it always needs to be explained?...

Let me explain...

7 days ago I was $1,000 away from my $5,000 fundraising goal for my Trek across the country this summer. If you don't know what I'm speaking of, please take a moment and read this post and it will plenty catch you up:
It's Happened

So yes this entire time I know that God would provide. However I didn't know the details on how He would do it or when but I knew that he WOULD do it. Again some things can't be explained but that's what makes it even more real.
Monday I was handed a check by a friend from his family for $100. Awesome that is such a blessing. Tuesday and Wednesday went by and I worked my little butt off like always but was excited to make it to Thursday because that meant two days off and a good wholesome walk with a friend whom I had an incredible talk with about Ministry and Mission work. About Gods path that He has us on and how the conversation taking place had already been planned thousand upon thousands of years before. How incredible it is how Gods given us the things that make our hearts ache and strive to serve Him. Explaining gifts and receiving while giving and giving is receiving... Make any sense? It's Thursday and She hands me a check for $100. And as soon as I returned home I had a message waiting for me from a friend from church that explained they were donating to the cause and needed more information on how So I sent her the link and instructions. Another $100. Now I thought that was pretty cool $200 in one day. I personally thought that was plenty but God thought other wise. I was already running late but I needed to go to the office to make some copies of some forms that were due very soon before I left for Seattle. So I decided to check my mail box while I was making copies in the office. Excited I saw two envelopes (I love mail. It brings joy to my heart to see pen to paper moved around to create letters and words that spill the depth of thoughts and updates on what is happening in peoples lives and things that encourage me as well).

One envelope contained a bill from my Mom for my loans...It was still nice to get mail. I pulled the other envelope out and saw that there was only a single line of words typed on it that said, "To: God's call for Daria's Summer". I was very confused and asked Joy if she knew who this was from. She looked at it confused to and said "I don't know...Open it"! So I made a few copies she walked to the front of the office and I opened it alone...I counted green pieces of paper. $20, $40, $60, $80, $100...etc...etc...etc...etc... $350 in cash. I was shaking. Who gave this to me? I quietly put the money back in the envelope and walked away from it frazzled. I could barely hold paper. Lara walked in and saw me and instantly stopped and asked me what was wrong and I pointed to the table where the envelope laid and I couldn't speak...Instead I sobbed. Joy asked if that was a good noise. She found me as well and asked what was up and I pointed and Lara explained what I tried to explain to her. We stood there speechless. Joy laughed and apologized for laughing. She wasn't laughing at my reaction. She was laughing because how else do you react to such an awing God moment? We didn't know what to do so we just stood there. Lara was frozen, I was bent over sobbing and Joy was laughing. Pulled myself together I headed out on my way to get my bike fitted.

The next morning as I was updating my goal amount and what was left, I had an update posted that said, "Knock a hundred off your total, I'm sending you a check". Awesome! So while I was typing in the new amount that was left I had a best friends Mother message me saying to take another $100 off the amount needed... I wasn't even finished typing up my updated status amount! What in the world is going on?

$230 remained...with in 52 hours He just filled it up completely. Yesterday, Saturday, I had another family from church message me saying that they wanted to fund the remaining $230 that was needed to reach my $5,000 goal. Just like that. And it isn't even over yet. People are still donating.

I...don't...know...what...to...say...Nothing needs to be said. Just constant praises.

This is another building block. I told my family. I had my family in tune while it was happening and now that it's happened, people are flabbergasted. Yep. That word doesn't even describe it. Like I said before it doesn't make any sense to me or to lots of others. I knew He would do it. I didn't know how or when but He DID.

On this earth it might seem completely strange, and radically ridiculous. Wild to barely be able to begin to comprehend. But to God, it's normal. It makes perfect sense.

Bumps and Bananas Just Don't Mix

This day can't go without being recorded. To say the least, God works in the strangest ways... Strange in a human earthly sense. Though it's all perfectly normal to Him. Clever.

It took me way longer to get on the road but I had dreams last night and I woke up praying in the middle of it all. Hallelujah. I was on the road. Before I even got there my iPod was dead. "Oh well can't use it while I'm riding on tour so I'll leave it." On my way I discovered more of my gears and how to smoothly transition better. Also feeling rather timid about shadows from trees on sunny winding roads. You can't tell where the ruts and dips are in the road until you've hit them. Everything blends, flashing while you're zooming, trusting nothing will fail on the object on which I hover over while my wrists and legs take the blunt impact. Fast down this hill with pavement flowing underneath like a rushing river. I have been finding it easier to do this than transition through seasons of this life... Anyway...

I stopped off in Forestville to fix my shoe clip and when I got to my next destination I couldn't unclip my left shoe. I was caught off guard practically in the middle of the intersection. I fell for the first time on my bike (or off my bike rather...half way at least). As I struggled to get my foot out (which it clearly wasn't budging) the car driving by pulled off to the side and a woman came running out at me. Three other individuals came running from their street corner stores. I was surrounded while I was still trying to hold onto what was left of my pride. Clearly I was embarrassed. Here I am, 25, been riding bikes since I was 3. I'm about to ride across the United States and here I am, sitting, in an intersection after falling flat on my side. "I'm fine. Really I'm OK! My shoe, it just didn't come off my clip. I'm OK. Just...Trying...To get...My foot off my clip!" People were trying to help me up. At this point the foot that was still attached to my bike was still underneath my bike and now I look like a turtle struggling to get right side up from being put on her back...

How's that for a painted picture?

Mark, the guy from the shipping store offered me water and asked me if I needed help. I pulled my shoe off at this point and walked over in my sock. ("I can walk, my body is fine... I didn't fall on my tail bone. Praise God.") I twisted my shoe off the clip and tried to fix it. Thought I had, but it didn't work and now the clip was stuck in the peddle. Marks friend, Ed, came over and they began to chat about Eds son who's a cyclist. Then they talked about how they would never want to be strapped to something like a bike. How scary it is. I explained that I've fallen harder elsewhere and that I was training. They asked me why and I told them all about my trek while I continued to struggle with my peddle. Mark walked back inside his store and came back with $10. Then Ed gave me $5. They told me to put it towards my trip.

I was overwhelmed. Suddenly I felt stubborn and awed by how God did that. How he stripped away pride, knowledge, plans. Physically stopped. While all of this was taking place Mark and Ed were talking about old days and how Mark would be "pushing daisy's"  if he hadn't quit drinking 23 years before... I told him I thought that was amazing. Because it was. Even though I didn't know him, I was proud of him.

I rode on not telling them I still had 45 miles left to ride. But I went. They gave me their blessing and I them as I made the normal climb towards Guernville. I still really wanted to make good time...Human... In order to make good time I need energy. So I thought that perhaps this was still a good time to try and sustain myself by physically feeding my body. I pulled out the banana I had been dreaming about for most of the afternoon. I began to carefully peel it while riding and I hit a bump. Slow motion, I saw the banana fall and skid behind me...

For a split second I thought about going back to get it, but instead I raised my hands, looked above me and prayed, Laughing, "God I just want to be able to glorify you on this ride. I trust you to give me what I need. Because clearly and banana and self determination will not do it... Help me".

Sure enough he provided me with a soaring tail wind to kick me past goat rock and to Coleman valley road with in 15 minutes. Stellar!... Then it became hard again. But it was an amazing kind of hard. As I read words barely moving up the hill from people who had written in chalk for those who rode in the race last weekend, I pushed, yelled, walked and enjoyed the words, "Legs shut up!" written huge beneath my feet. That and "Batman" written in blue paint. I made it up the first steep part. I walked up through farm land and got back on my bike, nearly being blown off. I only walked up one other hill. It was amazing.

 I'm alright with walking sometimes. If you don't walk you wont get anywhere. I made it to the top of the last hill and coasted 6 miles home. I am tired, but so joyful of the events and opportunities to be able to use this tent. That and to find out that Ed went to school in Hershey, PA. Small world.

MMMM 60 miles. God is so good. I can only imagine what the road will be like with others there to witness such shenanigans