Things I Couldn't Make Happen

[ ]Ever since I can remember my mom has said she wished she had a motorcycle. Coming from my mom that's a very interesting statement, since she was never really known as a hellraiser or a party animal or anything, but when she was young she rode a bike and loved it so much that she's always wanted to do it again. I have to laugh every time she says it but boy do I get it. There's nothing in the world like the rush of power you feel when you turn the throttle on the handlebar. What a badass way to accelerate. There's also nothing like the feeling of hauling-ass at about 120mph, and knowing if you lean up more than about three inches the wind will tear you right off the bike and into the path of a semi probably, while the bike carries on just fine for a mile or so without you. That's intense y'all. [ ]If I'd had the funds I'd have bought her a bike in a heartbeat, and matching ones for dad and me. I figured an Electraglide might be a good choice, although I bet she could've handled a 350cc rice-burner no problem, with proper training of course. I can picture how cool it would've been to get a call from a friend on a Sunday afternoon..."Hello?" "Hey man. Wanna go hang at the river?" "Sorry man but I'm goin' ridin' with mom this afternoon. We're gonna hit the Narrows and then Hugh Daniel to the water tower and then up to the lookout, then back 119 by Lake Purdy, and then we're stopping to grab a bite in Cahaba Heights. Wanna meet us there later?" "Sure. See ya." You either love bikes or you don't, but to ride any bike all you need is a desire to ride. I couldn't get us a set of matching Hondas, and I couldn't do the next-best thing I wanted to do either- buy her a ride around the track at Barber Sports Museum in a sidecar. [ ]I have no idea how much it'd cost but they do things like that there. Who knows...maybe if they'd found out what the deal was they'd have set it up for free. It would've sure been great publicity, and for sure it'd be on the local news, to have an octogenarian riding a motorcycle. She's too frail at age 94 to do it now but she could've easily handled it well into her 80s. I'd have been strapped backward on a chase bike in front of her filming the whole thing. I'd have put it on YouTube and you bet your butt it'd have gone viral. I can see it now...mom riding in a sidecar with a big ol' biker dude at the helm. She'd have on an old-school helmet and vintage goggles, and she'd have a grin on her face you couldn't wipe off with a Mr. Clean Magic Eraser. Too much. [ ]I couldn't make it happen and that's a shame. It would've been epic, as they say. Ha, just as I typed the word "epic" I heard the TV in the living room and Mike from the show American Pickers said "epic" at that instant. I love life's little coinkidinks. Sorry, mom...I wish I could've made it happen for you. Who knows...maybe one day we'll ride the Rings of Saturn or cruise the Milky Way or race a shooting star. I'm in. Ready to ride?