Placing my hands on the handlebars, I lifted the small white bike from the gravel. Small whimpers quietly escaped my daughter’s lips, making their way into my ears as I dusted the dirt and small stones from her pants. “You okay, honey?” I asked, keeping my tone low. She nodded, gently wiping her nose. Looking up, I watched as her two friends expertly cruised on their bikes, maybe twenty yards away, around the tree-lined parking lot. “You’ll get this, baby,” I whispered. “It just takes time.” She nodded again.
Meanwhile, I looked on and observed my younger daughter setting up her pedals, getting ready to try again. For over thirty-five minutes now, the four girls had been biking around the empty bus lot; two girls who knew how to ride, two who desperately wanted to learn. Living on a road with no sidewalks and on which traffic often traveled at high speeds has not made for friendly bike-riding territory. Consequently, my girls have yet to achieve that magical milestone of balance. Unlike their two friends who had come to visit with their bicycles.
But I watched, as time after time again, my girls tried; sometimes alone, sometimes with help from me, sometimes with help from their friends. “Here, try this.” “You want me to push you?” “Try to keep your weight in the middle.” “You almost had it!” And yes, frustration reared its head on many occasions. But we celebrated small successes, especially when my girls’ faces turned to look at me beaming. “Four pedals, Papa, did you see that?!” Yes honey, I saw it. So proud.
An hour later, we left the parking lot, my girls still unable to remain upright on their bikes. But the perseverance they showed…that’s got to be worth something, right?
LANNY BALL, Literacy Specialist 
Your post took me back to teaching my own children how to ride. Like you, we lived on a busy street with no sidewalks. We would cut through the back neighbor’s yard to the neighborhood beyond. I admire your girls’ perseverance.
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Totally worth something! They will get it. Most kids do. (I was a lousy bike rider, but I eventually figured it out!)
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Yes! It’s worth everything. What a great moment and lesson for your daughter. She will get it. She’s lucky to have you by her side. I could hear your gentle reassurance.
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You bet it’s worth something! And that’s what all of us try to achieve, I think. That balance. They’ll get it with practice. Would that we all “get it” eventually!
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Ha! Yes, I did think about the metaphorical sense of balance when I wrote this. Thanks for catching that 😉
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These are the moments we treasure. I liked your words as you coached into their ears. I had the same issue with no sidewalk. My girls learned to ride on the grass. It helped a bit with the knees. It is wonderful you have saved this memory here. You will treasure it forever.
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Beautiful slice. I felt like I was right there in the moment with you.
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I had trouble learning to ride a bike. My dad and my brother spent forever trying to help me. I don’t think I appreciated their hard work then, but I sure do now.
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The girls will learn to ride their bikes and they will know that they had help and support in the process, that it took time to get it and that they were eventually successful. Understanding that other things in life can work that way, too may turn out to be the gift that keeps on giving.
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Ahhh. The peer pressure of bike riding. We found the final definitive help was a borrowed circus bike ( just super small) I guess the lower you make the center of gravity, the easier it is to balance.
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Aw, that’s awesome! I loved the little snippets of encouraging conversations! This reminds me of when my daughter was learning to walk; her perseverance struck me so much then that I sliced about it back then! I guess moments like this are probably in my future!
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Oh yes! Balance, persistence, love, practice… it’s all worth something. Thanks for a little slice of love and childhood.
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