Hard to Swallow

I was speaking to a friend the other day on the phone. She lives far from here, in another state. However, it is as though we are knit together and no distance apart whatsoever. We have known each other since we were tiny kids. Our relationship has been on-again-off-again for various reasons, yet we are always close at heart. And now we are sisters in Christ, bringing us even closer.

She was telling me about her daughter, who a while back, to my friend's horror, got a motorcycle. Gasp. Recently, her daughter got into a wreck. Thankfully, she was not seriously injured. However, it was apparently terribly painful. So I would have thought, like my friend might have thought, that it would be the end of motorcycles for this young woman. 

Nope. She went and bought another, bigger motorcycle. And from what I understand, it is not even that she loves motorcycles. She might possibly have given up riding motorcycles. But there was another issue altogether affecting her decision.

My friend told me that the motorcycle community there is a very tight group. They are strongly supportive of one another, evidenced by a group of bikers who hung around the parking lot of the hospital all night while her daughter was there. They were not allowed in to see her, but stayed outside just so she would know they were there. They helped her other times too, like coming to the rescue when she had a flat tire. It sounds like they would be there for each other 24/7, no matter what. 

So this young woman would forego other options, even risk her safety, rather than lose that fellowship. I get that. I know what it is to long intensely for that level of community. I'm not saying that I'm desperately alone. I do have close friends and family. But if this group can rally so passionately around the commonality of motorcycles, it is very convicting to me as a member of the church of Jesus Christ.