Marriage on Two Wheels

Recently I began riding with my husband on the back of his Harley. I was a little nervous at first, because…well quite frankly because I’ve ridden in a vehicle with him. We’ve had our share of disagreements aka full blown arguments over the way he drives. Sometimes I think he believes he’s a race car driver. That being said I’m not a scaredy-cat. I’m a tree climbing, rollercoaster riding, roof walking, taking chances kind of girl. But putting my life in the hands of my wannabe racer husband was a little out of my comfort zone. However, I began to notice how careful he was when he rode so I decided to take the plunge. Also, I thought how cute I would look in my leathers! So off we went!

This was not my first time on a bike, but it had been a few years. Ahem, maybe 25 or so. I also rode 3 wheelers as a teen so I understood the importance of shifting your weight and balancing. It seemed right away we worked well together on this huge bike of his. On one of our very first rides together I started thinking how this was great marriage counseling! Here’s a few things that I noticed.

First, I had to follow his lead. Anyone that knows me even a little knows how headstrong I can be. So in life I can tend to get out of my place in our relationship and try to take the lead. This causes so much discord and confusion. Now sometimes David wants me to take the lead on certain things. He is a smart man and knows my strengths. But by and large one of my major issues is following the lead of the husband God placed in my life. Before you say, “Dianne, that is old school!”, let me remind you how our Heavenly Father set up marriage and that the husband is the head of the home. God didn’t conjure this up to press women down. He set this in place so we would be protected. Husbands have a heavy load to bear when it comes to taking responsibility for their families. They will be judged accordingly one day. When we ride David is at the front and I’m behind him. I have to trust he knows where we are going and he knows best how to get us there. I have to admit it’s much easier to do this on a Harley than in real life. However, if I truly trust my husband then I can manage this in day to day happenings.

Secondly, we HAVE to work together! Remember that weight shifting thing I was talking about? If David leans to the left, I can’t lean to the right. Well I could, but it would be counterproductive and could even cause us to wreck. If we don’t move in harmony, it’s going to be a rough ride. The same principle applies to marriage. If we are constantly pulling in our own direction and moving towards different things our marriage is headed for a wreck. We need to have common goals and desires. And what a beautiful thing is a marriage where 2 people are working together!

Lastly, this brings us close, like real close! My primary love language is physical touch. When David spends time hugging me or putting his arm around me I’m flying high! This man of mine, however, sometimes forgets this since his love language is acts of service. He’s always on the go and rarely sits still longer than a few minutes at a time. I always joke about how most women complain that their husbands come home from work and just sit. I can’t get mine to sit down! He always has something he feels he needs to do. I am grateful though that he makes sure things around here are in working order. When we are on that Harley though…I get to hold on to him and sit close to him for as long as we’re riding! Bonus points because he enjoys our rides together. He will reach back and rub my leg and for someone that has physical touch for their primary love language it’s like a slice of heaven.

We’ve had people tell us to sell that Harley and buy a new car. There is no way we’re doing that! This is our fun time together that we BOTH enjoy and it brings us closer. That’s one thing we aren’t gonna wreck!