Rhino Ride

My story begins with a discovery of a passion for bike riding.  I started bike riding just this year. After training for three months, I made a crazy last minute decision to ride from the Georgia line to the southernmost point in Key West, totaling 594 miles. I rode 500 miles in three days in the July heat. Just 17 miles short of reaching the southernmost point, I ended up in the hospital for two days due to Rhabdomyolysis. The minute I was released from the hospital, I jumped on my bike and finished the 17 miles to the tip of Key West. With bike in tow, I returned to Jacksonville on a Greyhound bus.  A seed was planted when I met a kind couple at a stop in Stuart, FL at mile 300. They suggested that on my next bike ride I should raise money for a cause.

As I thought about this idea, I reflected on my past experiences.  I have experienced loss due to a double homicide suicide. My Mother tried reaching out for help in her community.  No one really knew or understood what she was going through. She shot my younger brother then my step-father and then turned the gun on herself. As you can imagine, I was completely devastated and disconnected from reality. I struggled for many years with alcohol. Shortly after, I ended up being baker acted and was placed in a mental hospital. I also tried going to rehab but would eventually relapse and end up waking up in the front yard from passing out the night before.

When I reached out for help, I got help in a different kind of way. Six professionals offered their services to me for free for three months and all I had to do was commit to show up to the appointments. Therapist, Nutritionist, Chiropractor, Meditation Specialist, Reiki Specialist, and Acupuncture Therapist all gave of their gift in a caring environment. Although the results were not immediate, it was the act of brotherly love that set me on the path of transformation. Experiencing God’s love through that community had rippling effects on me throughout the years. It helped me get off antipsychotic and depression meds and eventually, to stop alcohol years later. I am very blessed to have arrived at a heathy place where I too can serve. Life is all about the relationships we have with others, however long or brief. Be kind. We have two hands that we are able to receive and also with those two hands we can give back. We should honor those that know their gifts and use them to help others in our community. There are many people in our community that would reach out for help if they only knew where to get it. We have professionals that really care and we need to do better about making awareness of the resources we have right here in our community.