Sunday, September 29, 2013

Park Hyeonbae / Experience Demonstration / Tue 1 p.m.

 My First Bicycle Riding

 

     If I'm right, riding bicycle when young is very challenging and exciting for every children. But it leaves an impressive trail on their minds. In my case, the memory of first my bicycle riding has been left very warm and missing. When I recall the memory, I get being dyed with the orange colored sunset in my memory, no matter the day I rode bicycle for the first time was bright blue.

 

     When I was young, my family often moved here and there, and when I was 10 or 11 years old, my family was in Bucheon, Gyeonggi Province. In Bucheon, the family of my mother side lived, so I and my younger sister used to go out to play with the children of my mother's sister. We used to play in the stadium park very near the neighborhood.

 

     One day in summer, my mother, my sister and I and my mother's sister with her children went to the park, with bikes. The time was some late afternoon. Until that day, I and my sister couldn't ride bike, but the children of my mother's sister could do. So I and my sister had to learn how to ride bicycle for the first time. At first I thought that I couldn't ride bike because it looked too dangerous to ride a vehicle with two circles in a linear line.

 

     "It would be difficult to advance at the first time you pedal the bike, but once the bike gets some speed, it will be much easier."

 

     My mother encouraged me to ride bike for the first time. Also she said "I will help you to balance behind you," to relieve my anxiety about falling down.

 

     The bike was very big for me; actually, it was really big one. As I sat on the saddle of the bike, my feet barely could step the pedals. I got to feel nervous and anxious. But somewhere in my mind, I held a belief that my mother will help me out, so I became at ease.

 

     Finally I started to move my legs and feet to advance ahead. Very slowly, the bike started to go forward. Behind me was my mother holding the back of the bike, so I got rather relaxed with the situation. More and more it got fast, and again I became nervous and I wanted to stop and to look back to check if my mother was still holding the back. Then my mother said behind me, "Don't look back! Try to balance yourself with the bike!" I grabbed the handle more tightly and decided to carry on. Since I knew that a bike can go forward with continuous steps, I tried to keep my feet pedaling. At the same time, I kept yelling "Mom, don't take off your hands!" Then my mother said, "OK, don't worry. You just keep trying to balance and go forward!"

 

     As the bike got fast, I concentrated on balancing myself and pedaling. Finally when the bike got enough speed to advance, I felt that I had to gain more speed, so I started to boost my pedaling. When the bike was running fast enough, I wanted to check if my mother is still behind me. "Mom, are you still holding?" But no answer was heard. I was riding without any help! As I came to know my mother was no longer holding the bike, I felt anxious, but also senses of accomplishment and pride at the same time.

 

     As the main road of the park was along with the outside of the stadium, it was circular. So I ran and ran round along with the road. Although my riding was very unstable, I didn't stop riding. I learned for the first time that the air was very fresh and cool, and that the speed thing like this was very exciting and pleasant when riding bike. Whenever I made a round, I saw myy mother and her sister was in their chattering. "Be careful!" they noticed me, smiling at me.

 

     As my bike ran, the time went by. It started to become orange-colored in the sky. The sunset became orange-colored, and the landscape was really, really beautiful so much. The sky was full of the color, and the clouds were in thousands of their shapes. I'll never forget the sky.

 

     The way home was full of excitement. "Was the riding fun enough?" my mother asked me. "Yes! It was very fun! I want to ride again!" I answered. And as my answer, I came to enjoy bike riding often after that day.

 

     Now I got older than that time, and still riding bike is very fun and exciting. Because there are no roads wide enough to enjoy bike-riding with avoiding cars, now I don't ride bike. But sometimes I recall the memory of that day of riding bike with the orange-colored sky, fresh and cool air, and my mother's smile.

1 comment:

  1. I am very late to post this writing, so I don't have any comment..!!

    Park.

    ReplyDelete