Monday’s are usually tough to get back on the bike because we are usually sore and stiff from coming off a day of rest. This Monday was particularly hard because I had to leave my beautiful family behind. We also had to make a tough decision to “adjust our play” and head to Dallas instead of the hilly, dangerous route to Fayetteville and Tulsa, which means we will miss out on seeing some good college friends and street soccer family in Tulsa.

As we rode away from my family in the high heat of the day at 1:45 I felt conflicted. My 5 yr old nephew’s simply put words stuck in my head. He wore his new diamond hat passed down by his new BFF Shane and asked how could we leave to go to San Francisco. He suggested we should just stay in Little Rock. He also said I should shave but I didn’t listen to either. My mom did her best covering up her tears with a little laugh as we walked from the car to Spokes bike shop for one last goodbye.

She is the reason I have this heart to serve others and I truly believe that our happiness here on earth is not found in money, power or fame but based on the positive impact you have on those around you. At Street Soccer USA we have a street skill called “Play With Heart” meaning to put the best you in anything you do treating everyone with love and respect.

The power of this street skill became clear to us as we sat on the patio of a restaurant in Arkadelphia after our 73 mile ride. It was 7 pm and the only hotels were either backtracking to Caddo Valley 5 miles or at the Pioneer Inn which we were told by everyone in town not to stay there. My mom said she would make a call to someone who might take us in for the night so we didn’t have to sleep with one eye open or camp with the monstrous mosquitos.

Within minutes my mom had lined up a place for us to stay with someone she had met only once years ago. Sherry’s husband D showed up to where we were eating and we followed him to their beautiful home about a mile down the road. We stayed up late eating homemade ice cream and sharing stories with this lovely couple. One thing that stuck was something Sherry said about my mom. She couldn’t even remember where they met at this fundraiser but they were randomly placed at the same table and she said my mom made such a positive impact on her that she knew she had to take us in.

We are so blessed to have met these two wonderful people. Sherry gave me a big hug and said she now knows why she met my mom three years ago! It’s funny hearing someone say they love you after only 12 hours of knowing them and genuinely wanted to respond with a big “I love you” back. We hit the road towards Dallas as they led the way in their truck filming us and waving bye.

Next stop should be Texarkana or 15 miles into TX depending on how we feel. If you know anyone we should meet along the way please let us know! We love connecting with positive people and being changed for the better more and more each in each visit. Try to play with heart today and see just how far the positive impact you have on people will reach.