Life can be seen like a Jack-in-the-box. One cranks the lever out of curiosity, until a clown pops out and surprises him/her. The thrill of surprises is a part of life, and it can either be enjoyable or forgetful, depending on the experience such surprise brings. In surprises, there are some that can be considered an adventure: a surprise that feeds on curiosity and returns back a once-in-a-blue-moon moment that is much more rewarding as it may seem.
Ever felt that all the necessities that you need are not at your disposal when it is most needed? Ever felt that you had to go to an urgent commitment and see that there is no transportation available for use? Ever felt that you don't want to spend cash just to commute?
Well, here's one for the record books:
After I was online exchanging humorous blows with a great friend of mine and monitoring thesis updates, I prepared myself to go to the dentist. My dentist is quite far from where I live: it is situated in the heart of the Central Business District (CBD) of the country's premier business capital. After much preparation, I went out of the house, looking for a car which I can use to take myself to the dentist. Unfortunately for me, there was no available car in sight, except for a company van which I couldn't risk driving because of number-coding. The mere fact that there was no transportation available at my disposal irked me: I was about to be late for a dental appointment, one which I cannot afford to miss.
The thought of commuting ran into my mind. Though I am used to riding the jeepney and the taxi cab, I did not feel the need for commuting. Thrifty as I am (in a situation like this), I crossed out commuting as a solution to my transportation problem. I was running out of options, when all of a sudden, a radical idea barraged into my mind:
A decent motorcycle ride.
The thought of a motorcycle ride scared me at first. Riding a motorcycle has been a fear for people not used to taking such kind of transportation. In fact, this has been implicated in most traffic-related accidents, with more deaths than injuries on record. I know of people who had lost a part of their lives due to motorcycle accidents, most especially in areas where helmets are not a gold standard to wear (i.e. province). It was a risk for me to take, but risk-taking has been a part of my being spontaneous. I love surprises, and I love the thrill of adventure. Risking all the hazards that it may bring, I took on the challenge. Besides, it's only for just this once.
I went to my brother's office just a house away from home. I asked his secretary if I can borrow one of the company riders to take me to my dentist. Surprised as they were, I stood my ground, adamant on my decision to ride a motorcycle. I was informed of the risks, I took it in me, and replied that no one is to be blamed for any accident that may be incurred during the duration of the trip. Good thing a brave rider took my challenge: the guy was almost half my size, but he willingly accepted it and gave me a ride behind the motorcycle that he owns.
Wearing a helmet on my head and the left earpiece of my iPod headset attached to my left ear, I hitched at the back of the motorcycle, taking a ride for the first time since my early childhood days. It was the first time for me, in such a very long time, to ride on the motorcycle, this time being a passenger taken around the busy streets of the CBD. It was a sunny Thursday, where all the people are about to return to their jobs from lunch, and where all the air pollution is rampant because of the thick congestion of cars and public utility vehicles jamming the streets and avenues of a bustling metropolis.
As the motorcycle started, my heart started to race. It was a thrill that I haven't felt since driving my Med friends to Laguna and back. When it started to move, the thrill intensified, and I was now moving along towards the busy streets on a 2-wheeled vehicle that posed a greater risk rather than a benefit, in terms of safety. When we made it past the simple roads, we then entered the jam-packed roads of the CBD. The breeze of polluted air and the heat of idle cars started to collide and were felt all over my body as the adventurous ride progressed. The rider zigzagged his motorcycle right past a bunch of cars, big and small. There was a time that during the overtaking moments, my shoulders would almost hit the corners of big cars. My heart would pound harder as the overtaking maneuvers were getting sharper, as the feeling of that was like I was about to fall off a motorcycle in almost fast speeds. We rolled over humps, a few ditches, and turned nearly-hard lefts and rights, but every dangerous action turned out safe in the end. It took me 10 minutes from home to make it into my dentist. After we alighted on the side of the road, I requested the rider to go back to the office and not wait for me, as I preferred commuting back home after my appointment with the dentist.
Riding a motorcycle is really scary when one rides on it for the first time. It takes a matter of getting used to it, usually after a couple of rides. The experience of riding on a motorcycle just to go to the dentist is a memory that I will never forget. To challenge my fears of riding such a vehicle along the country's busiest city is a once-in-a-lifetime event, for successive rides on it would bear no fear on me after this unique joyride. It may cause fear at first, but to ride it and experience the thrill of it is just so extraordinary, it'll make you become fearless afterwards. To feel the breeze all over your body is like immersing your body in front of a big fan, only thing is, there is a mixture of bad air from all the fumes that come out of other vehicles. In short, motorcycle rides is one of a number of highlights in urban living. It may be a drag, but in reality, it packs a smooth, yet, thrilling ride.
Try the motorcycle for one. It'll suck the fear right out of you, and replace it with bravery, and some bragging rights to slap on a hater's face from time to time.
You think going to the beach and hitting the blue waters is the only fun thing to do this summer? Well, think again.
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