Posted by: Kallie

I saw Andrew working on his bike one sunny afternoon in May outside of our apartment complex in Holland, Michigan. I had always wanted to strike up a conversation with Andrew, but was usually too shy and just settled for a quick “hi.” This time was different. “Hey! Where did you learn to fix bikes?” I asked. “Oh, here and there… on the road,” he replied nonchalantly. After practically prying it out of his mouth, I learned that Andrew was part of a group, Fueled By Rice, which bicycled from Beijing to Paris from 2007-2008. I was astounded. “We have to talk when I get back from India!”

We went on our first date a few months later and to make a long story short, I have a touring bike in my garage, a ring on my left index finger, and plane tickets booked to Frankfurt on August 22nd, 2012.

Dreams started becoming a reality last fall when I mentioned my hopes for a similar bike trip to my coworker Devin while working at Lemonjello’s Coffee. I somewhat jokingly asked if he and Tori would like to join us, half expecting them to laugh at such a foolish idea, but to my surprise a few days later Devin approached me saying, “Yeah. We’re in.”

Each day brings us one step closer to the bike trip although it still feels like a dream, like an idea that will never become a reality. But in my 24 years, so naïve, I have learned one thing- and it is to do it and do it now.

I hear so often “I wish” or “if only” and to me it’s a pathetic excuse. Travelling is one thing most people wish they could do. It gets put off because either you don’t have the time or you don’t have the money. By the time people actually get a chance to visit the Great Wall of China, they’re 75 years old, pull up on a tour bus, snap a photo, and leave- they can’t physically climb to the top.

So quickly we are sucked into consumerism and tied down to a societal value: security. A steady career with benefits, a modest home in a nice neighborhood, a new car, and a family. These are all great things, but what happens to our dreams? Do they get put on hold? Do they disappear? If so many people want to see the world than why do only a small percentage actually make it happen?

So here we are, three couples who are swimming upstream, going against society and perhaps our parents’ values of safety and security. But we are doing it. We are doing it again. We are making it happen and we are making it happen now.