R100S

R100S
Originally uploaded by thepoemster.

I used to be a Boy Scout and our motto was “A Scout is round”.

Back then it didn’t hold much meaning for me.

A reoccurring thought in my life has been that I feel so much is intertwined and connected. I know that it is only because of the nuances of the English language and the rest is contrived but still I have some fun with it and I’m a big symbolism fanatic sooo…

The R100S was a departure from the Japanese bikes that I had been riding prior in that it was more of a well-rounded machine. It did not excel at any one function be it speed or handling or long distance travelling. But it did everything well. It was light and maneuverable. I could ride it to the corner store with little fuss or pack up the snap on bags and take it on a trip to wherever. It ate up miles and miles of twisting back roads when I wanted do a little “sport riding”. It had plenty of power throughout the RPM range. As pictured it had just been rebuilt in 1983 because I was rather hard on it.

Back then I was hard on everything, even myself when I think of it. I’m still rebuilding me.

Like that bike, I also do not excel at any one thing. I do a number of things reasonably well when I have a love and an interest in them. By becoming well rounded in my own life I’ve found I can roll easier and my softened edges are less likely to snag or catch on an adjacent being. I have many interests I can turn to, I stay busy and challenged and can refine and redefine my goals as my life requires.

Whereas I am no longer a boy, I am still searching just as the word “scout” implies and the meaning of the motto, I understand well.