Life is like a bicycle- short story

                            

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Life is like a bicycle. The only time that you fall off, is when you stop pedaling. 

Heloise and her husband recently celebrated their twenty fifth wedding anniversary. They had two sons, both grown and out of the house, living their own lives. It was only the two of them left now. Instead of celebrating this anniversary with the joy expected, her husband surprised her with a card. He was leaving her. He found someone much younger and prettier and he wanted to spend the rest of his life with his new girlfriend. She was apparently his soulmate and with the twins gone, he no longer had any obligation towards Heloise. 

Heloise was absolutely devastated. She was looking forward to spending time with her husband now that the kids were grown. They have always talked about going to Paris and she had been dreaming about this trip for a long time. 

Heloise struggled with the fact that her kids had left home. Her life was so consumed with the twins.  Peter did not notice the change so much as he was mostly at work. Heloise had given up on her dreams a long time ago. When she had the twins they became her life.  She had to give up most of her dreams and the twins became her dream. She raised the kids while he worked. She attended all their soccer games, and she was the one making sure that everyone was happy. 

She did not notice him starting to come home later in the evenings. All of a sudden after the kids had left, there was just nothing left. She had nothing to do during the day, she had nowhere to go and all her friends were suddenly too busy to spend time with her because they still had kids in the house.   

Peter left her the house, a car, and enough money to live on so that she didn't have to work. She also had her savings that he was not even aware of.  Ever since they got married, she had saved up a little bit of money each month for she knew the day would come when they would go on her dream trip to Paris.  Now it seemed as if this was never going to happen.  

Who wants to go on a romantic trip alone with no one to share the excitement? Heloise became totally miserable.  She missed the twins, and it didn't even seem to bother them that she and Peter were splitting up.  They were both so consumed with their own lives.  

Every night before going to bed Heloise would go through the book with all her plans for their Paris trip and then she would cry herself to sleep. She felt sorry for herself.  She stopped taking care of herself and every day became the worst day of her life.  

One night after crying herself to sleep for the millionth time, Heloise had a dream.  She dreamed that she was a famous writer and that she was traveling the world with her best seller.  When she woke up, she felt totally different. She suddenly remembered her biggest dream ever...she wanted to write a book! 

She got up, and looked at herself in the mirror. What stared back at her was a miserable fifty year old slob. It was as if she noticed herself for the first time in years. What happened to her once long brown hair? She had grey hairs all over and wrinkles that she never noticed before. How can someone look and feel this way at only fifty years old?

Somehow she healed overnight. Heloise decided to lift herself out of her misery and to do something about herself. She booked herself on a flight to the nearest city and spent a week there changing every aspect of herself.  She cut her hair and had it colored in the reddest red that she could choose.  She threw out all her clothes and bought herself a new wardrobe.  She had her nails done and she totally looked like a whole new person.  When she arrived home, she drove over to Peter's office to go tell him that he had to take the kids for the holiday as she was going on a trip.  She had things to do and people to see.  

She looked absolutely stunning when she got out of the car.  She walked over to his building and the heads of all the men turned as she walked past them.  No one recognized her and when she stood in front of Peter's secretary/girlfriend she did not even recognize her.  

Peter was not in his office and she sat on a chair in his office waiting for him to show.  He was absolutely amazed when he saw her.  At first he didn't recognize her and when she started talking he nearly fell off his chair.  He couldn't believe the transformation.  For the first time in years, they had a proper conversation.  She was ready for whatever he had to say, because she knew that she was over him, and that nothing could change her mind.  He complimented her more than once about the way she looked, but when she told him that he had to take the twins for the holiday he was a little pissed off.  He had other plans.  She told him that she didn't really care about his plans anymore and that she was now in control of her own life, and from now on she was making her own rules.  

After she left his office, she went straight to the travel agency to go and book her trip.  For once she did not feel scared anymore.  She was going to follow her dreams.  She was going to spend three months in Paris, pursuing her own dream.  She was going to write a book.  She had always loved writing and it was Peter that asked her to stop working at the newspaper where she worked when they met.  

She was taking back her own dream....and who said that dreams did not come true? 

Moral of the story:

• Don't give up on your dreams.  Ever!
• Remember to look after yourself, even if you have children!  YOU are also important.   
• Remember to spend time with your husband...one day it will only be the two of you left.  Especially after the kids left home. 
• Never underestimate the power of a dream! Even if it comes to you in you sleep...lol! Your subconscious is trying to tell you something.
• Don't stop pedaling.  You will fall off that bicycle. 

I hope you enjoyed my story!