Fast forward 28 years and now I get it. Let me explain.
My life is filled with getting to and from work for two parents and two schools for two kids, child care for child number three, soccer games and practices, trips to the pool, birthday parties, grocery shopping, last minute “Mom, I forgot fill-in-the-blank” errands, meltdowns, etc. The modern working mom’s life is hardly for the faint of heart. Call me crazy, I’ll own it.
But the craziness is because I’m a working mom. Not because I’m a car-free mom. You see all moms live their lives according to the principles of problem solving on the fly followed by a heavy dose of diplomacy. However, there’s a misty perception that my life must be more difficult because we choose not to own a car. The reality is that my car-freeness is simply another variable - not the only variable - that ups the ante toward a four-of-a-kind of jokers. Even if I had a car, I still have three kids and all those things I listed above that I have to get done. I’d still have the baby meltdown over getting in the seat, the pre-teen meltdown over the bad hair day, the racing around at the last minute because somebody forgot something. That doesn’t change.
What does change is the added variable of being an active transportation family and this means that I have to plan trips more thoroughly and thoughtfully. But I also have the joy of spending time with my family in a way that allows us to connect. And the reality of having to think twice before those impulse buys because we didn’t plan to carry that much stuff home. I’ve also rightfully earned the fun of impromptu breaks when it’s hot outside and the warmth of human connection with the people we pass with no physical barrier between us. Daily trips - otherwise mundane errands - can be a joy when you slow down a bit and savor the experience.
Loaded up on two trailers looking more like a Move By Bike than a simple Freecycle.
Our
recent trips (full disclosure: Things One and Two, Ellie and Libby,
aren’t home from visiting their dad for the summer so it’s been a little
easier) have included adventures to help us continue to get settled in
our new home. First up, picking up Clementine’s crib by bike. We scored
it off of Arlington Freecycle so this was a double feel good whammy of
zero carbon footprint and saving something from the landfill. We earned a
lot of smiles from other trail users biking down the W&OD loaded up
like this and it turns out our trip would have been twice as long had
we used a car because we were able to use the trails to navigate under I-66 instead of driving the couple of extra miles to get around it.
Once we had the crib, we needed the mattress, so that meant a trip to Potomac Yard. Again, we traveled by bike on the W&OD Trail to the Four Mile Run Trail and then connected at the bottom of Crystal City to the awesome MUP (multi-use path) that runs in front of the entire shopping stretch down Jefferson Davis Highway. While it’s a little hairy to make your way by bike through multiple intersections with distracted drivers focused more on shopping and less on cyclists crossing their path, it was still fun to have the baby and mattress biking down the trail at the same rate of speed as families piled into minivans on the road. Baby likes to wave at big vehicles, so this earned us some funny looks and bonus points for diplomacy, but it also earned a well-deserved pit stop for ice cream on a hot day.
Packing up our new crib mattress (and froggy potty).
The most fun and productive errand was to shop for back to school stuff. After taking the Custis Trail most of the way to bike lanes on Quincy Street and Clarendon Boulevard, we discovered a parking garage in the Market Common at Clarendon with ample bike parking. After filling the trailer with several bags we opted for a quieter ride home and found the Lyon Village Park sprayground. This represented a major victory since had we been in a car, we would never have stumbled upon this jewel. Lesson learned when shopping by bike: keep it simple, flexible and fun.
Traveling home through the neighborhood with our wares we discovered the Lyon Village Park sprayground.
We’re not just a bike family, though, now that we have access to such great transportation options in this area. This is a bit of a change from our old Portland home and my multi-modal munchkin Clementine has already begun to learn how to enjoy our experiences. She has taken to waving to the flashing red hand at pedestrian crossing signals, and she also waves to buses, which makes drivers smile. My other two daughters will be home from summer vacation soon and I’ve already obtained for them their own SmartTrip cards and maps. We’re prepared for anything and if one mode fails, we have others to fall back on.
By completing all our trips using our own human powered transportation or transit, we’ve definitely made what may appear to be a tough choice but I’m at peace with our decision. It’s OK that ours is one of few families who make this choice right now. However, if I had my way our bike and trailer entourage would be part of the fabric of everyday life and you would see more families going about their daily living this way. That’s our goal and that’s why we do it: to prove it can be done and to pave the way for others. Ghandi said, “Be the change you wish to see in the world.” OK, Ghandi. We’re on it.
Angela Koch
Events and Advocacy Coordinator
Revolution Cycles
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