I asked Master today if he knew what RAGRAI was, and he said no, so I decided to make it my post for the day.

RAGBRAI stands for Register’s Annual Great Bike Ride Across Iowa. The Register is THE paper in Iowa, printed in Des Moines. Every year they sponsor a ride that starts in a town close to the western boarder of the state and continues to the eastern boarder. Participants ride from town to town, going anywhere from 50 to 80 miles each day. There are usually around 10,000 registered riders and maybe that many unregistered participants. Many groups are accompanied by a support bus or an RV, bringing equipment and necessities to the place where the riders will spend the night.

I am on the subject of RAGBRAI because it came through my town today. They are not stopping overnight, simply passing through. It is one of those events that some people love, because there is a lot of activity, a festive atmosphere. Others hate it, because, let’s face it, it is an inconvenience. If the riders will be going down your street, you’d better not plan on going anywhere. Luckily, they came through town a block away from me.

What Would Bennet Do? Well, I wasn’t really interested in the activities myself, but I was sure Master would want to go out and look around a bit. And how could I describe what was going on without seeing for myself? So I walked down to the park, where the welcome was set up for the bikers. On the way there, I walked by the route the bikers took into town. I had to smile as I saw so many people sitting on lawns, watching the people come in, as through a parade were taking place. So this passes for entertainment in a small town. Although it would be pleasant to sit outside, chatting with friends and family, I wasn’t sure that I would want to watch bicycles roll through all day.

I went to the park where there were lots of food stands and port-a-pots. For a fee, a business or group could sponsor and decorate one of the portable toilets. Now, I understand the need for all of these facilities, and, if I had a business (or the money) I could see sponsoring one. But I would neither brag about it or decorate it. I thought that was a bit much. But they seemed to be having fun, and there was a contest, allowing the people to vote for their favorite potty.

Later in the evening, I needed to buy several things, so I went to a nearby town to go shopping. It was the town where the riders were stopping for the night. I knew with all the riders would be more inconveniences, but it was still the best place in the area to get the things I wanted, so I went. I didn’t go near the area where they were supposed to be camping, but they were still out and about, several eating at the same place I ate, and shopping at Wal*Mart, just like me.

I shared the roads with the bikers cautiously. My van is so much bigger than they are. It would be so easy for them to get hurt. And as I was leaving my town to visit the local county fair, an ambulance left, heading in the direction the bikers were coming from. Was someone in RAGBRAI hurt? It wouldn’t be the first time. I can only hope that it was only a minor fall calling out the EMTs.

It is now past 8:00 pm here. Most of the riders have come and gone, with just a few stragglers rolling through. I have to admit, I wonder how the experience would have been different if Master were here. Would he want to sit and watch them come through? Would he want to sit in the park and watch the town swell to 10 times its normal population? Or would he be like me? It’s not that I sat at home and hid. I went to the county fair. I preferred watching the horse show to watching the bicycles.

For my little town, RAGBRAI is over. But the ride continues through the week.

Safe journey, all.

Do not ask to have your load lightened. But for courage to endure. Do not ask for fulfillment in all your life. But, for patience to accept frustration. Do not ask for perfection in all you do. But, for wisdom not to repeat the mistakes. And finally do not ask for more before saying thank you for what you have received. - Brenda Short

Master sent me this quite a while ago, and I have saved it. This is a lesson that I seem to have to learn and relearn. Perhaps it is simply human nature, but I find that often I focus on what I don’t have rather than the many blessings that I enjoy.

Sometimes I feel that I am getting better (notice my exercise at the mall post) but pride goes before a fall. I often seem to be right back at square one.

I suspect that this is one of the life lessons I am here to learn. And I seem Master often struggling to teach me this. I will continue, Master, to study and learn under you.

Unless you have been hiding under a rock, it has been hard to ignore. Harry Potter is everywhere.

First, on July 13, the 5th movie, The Order of the Phoenix was released, setting box office records. On July 21, the 7th and final book of the series is to be released. Just for the record, I have seen the movie and have preordered the book. Yes, I am a fan.

Harry is all over the internet now. The final book is supposed to answer lots of questions, especially who lives and who dies. One company apparently shipped it’s preorders a little early, and many people (about 150, I think) received their copy early. Some of those have shown up on ebay. For a mere $250, you could buy your own copy and get it (gasp) a whole day early! Considering I paid 1/10 of that (I paid for shipping as well) I think I’ll wait until Saturday to get my copy.

And the spoilers. It seems everyone who had a copy is telling. Several people who don’t have a copy are telling. Or just plain making it up. My son has shared a few of the ideas with me, until I clamped my hands over my ears and refused to listen. I want to read the book, for heaven’s sake. I don’t want to know what all the theories are floating on the internet. Perhaps I will look AFTER I have read the book. Might be interesting to see who was close and who was not.

But I will follow the rules and wait until Saturday. Makes me wonder if that is part of my sub nature. I want to know what the rules are, and I want to follow them. I have a fear of inadvertently breaking them, something that I have done in the past.

Master Bennet has not said much about Harry Potter. I don’t think he is as big a fan as I am, although, I think he is interested if for no other reason than our world has been influenced by the young wizard. It is too be a pop culture phenomenon to ignore. Nevertheless, Master realizes there are more important issue in our world.

Many of you know that I am required to do 50 minutes of activity a day. The other day I went to the mall (to order the new Harry Potter book) and decided, given the heat, it would be good to do my walking inside in the air conditioning.

I made several circuits of the mall, my bag in hand. I walked quickly. I wanted to give the air of someone who was going somewhere with a purpose. I did indeed have a purpose, if not a destination. I was exercising for my health. And I was pleasing my Master. As I walked, I noticed many people in the mall.

One of the things that stood out to me that day was the number of people less fortunate than I. I saw several people who had difficulty moving around. One lady had a strange, rolling gait that led me to believe that she had a problem with her hip. Other people just shuffled along. I remember seeing someone using oxygen, and many others with slow, shuffling steps.

I was reminded of how lucky I am. I have my health. I am able to get around well. I could even break into a run if I had to. I was also struck with the fact that this attitude would have been pleasing to my Master. He has said to me (even on here) “Stop the pity party. Quit feeling sorry for yourself.” I don’t know that I will always carry the attitude I had that day, but when I don’t, perhaps I can reach back into my memory and remember that I am truly blessed.

On Sunday night, I went to a minor league baseball game. This was not strictly for pleasure, however. This was part of my job at the facility for the handicapped. It was a leisure outing. Another staff and I went with three clients.

One of those clients is very impatient. He was always wanting to “go”. There were some activities outside the ballpark before the game, and he had no patience for them. We stood in line a couple of times to get pictures taken. During that time, he hit (although not hard) spit and yelled that he wanted to go. I was thinking this was going to be a very long night. I was losing my patience myself; his behavior was terribe, and I was becoming very annoyed. The other staff and I tried everything from distraction, to “happy voices” to firmness. Nothing changed his attitude, though we were able to keep him from having full blown behaviors. After we got into the ballpark, however, he was content and settled down.

The next morning as I was thinking about the evening, I realized that that I had failed to a ask WWBD? I don’t know exactly what Master Bennet would have done. I am aware that he would not have the patience for this job. So maybe the better question is What Would Bennet Want Me to Do?

Of course, he would want me to do the best job possible. He would want me to handle the matter efficiently. He would want me to do well. I’m not sure how well I did, although in retrospect, I don’t know that I did “badly”. There perhaps was no magic answer to fix the problem. As my boss has said, we have been trying for years to teach that man patience. It just doesn’t sink in.

So I am left to wonder, did I serve Master well? Would he be proud of my actions? I think so. I think he recognizes the difficulty of the job/situation. Although it was frustrating, I think I handled the circumstances well.

Always serving Master.