Judy Johnston of Del Norte, Colorado writes:

Dear William,

I saw a photo of you standing alongside

your bicycle when you were kid.

do you still have fun riding your bike?

Dear Judy,

no. and certainly not the bike you're referring to.

but your question got me thinking about

the circumstances of bike riding.

we rode mostly out of necessity.

I include exploration with necessity. 

we had no notion of health benefits, or pleasant

rides through the countryside on summer days.

we road to the variety stores to nab cigarettes for our fathers.

we rode to snag loaves of Italian bread from the bakeries.

we road with the girls side-saddled across the top tubes

for the sake of their scent in the wind. 

we road to the dump to secure rare items discarded by man.

we road to the park, our gloves threaded through the handlebars

ready to play the game.

we rode for the utilitarian necessity of it, each time

an adventure, the way true love should always be.