Pride goeth before the fall

Or: Seven Deadly sins

A friend recently asked me if I feel proud of what I've done so far, and what I'm doing in general. This got me thinking, and I realized I don't actually feel 'proud' specifically. I'm happy with what I've accomplished; this is both the daily grind of getting in the miles and the hills, and overall challenge of going on this trip in general. I'm happy with what I'm doing, and know that it is hard. But I'm looking at this from the inside out. Everyone around me is doing the same thing, so it doesn't feel all that wondrous. It's just my daily grind. I think I might feel pride when I'm done, for having finished something so big. But in the day to day riding, and even looking at this for the various milestones (1500 miles, 5 weeks, climbed the Appalachians and the Ozarks, etc), they're all just things I had to do. 

Additionally, her question got me pondering the 'sin' of Pride, and how I feel about the Seven Deadly Sins in general. So here's my take on each of them. 

Pride - See above. 

Wrath - Directed at the hills! Seriously, those hills are obnoxious! Give it time and I might develop 'wrath' towards my bike seat. But really, I'm not mad about anything. 

Sloth - HAHAHAHA!

Gluttony - Oh, hell yeah. I eat everything. 

Lust - Not for at least 3 months, and certainly not after sitting in the bike seat for 8 or 9 hours a day. 

Avarice - There's not much to hoard or be greedy about. I have my little bunch of stuff I need, and that's it. The group as a whole is very generous and sharing. Occasionally I go into a store, like a walmart to restock shampoo or sunscreen, but as I walk around I realize there's nothing in the store I want. I'm actually hoping this aversion to stuff carries over when I'm done. 

Envy - We all have a little bit of 'gear envy' towards someone else's stuff. Maybe a shiny set of fenders, a really cool Garmin trip computer, or an awesome Pink Floyd cycling jersey. But as a whole, envy doesn't exist on this trip. 

So there you have it. Some sins, but not many. We are a blessed group. ;-)