Advice for the child I was

June 1, 2009
by Rodney Olsen
4 Comments

196__Rodney.jpgI’m not really sure when this photo was taken but I know it was well over 40 years ago. It’s me when I was just a few years old, before I learned so many of life’s lessons.

As I look into the face of that happy, innocent child, I wonder what advice I would give him. If I could go back to the mid-sixties and give my ‘young self’ some life advice, what would I say?

I think I’d tell him not to worry about the small stuff so much. I’d also tell him to cultivate a strong reading habit.

Some of my strongest advice would be in the area of faith. I’d recommend that he stay as close to God as he could and to learn how to lean on him through the good and the hard times.

I’d tell him to make the most of his relationship with his mother because he’d only have her around until his early twenties. (Thankfully I did have a great relationship with mum, but she still passed away far too soon.)

One of the things I’d be sure to say is to make sure you take lots of risks. Not reckless risks that would endanger him or others, but risks that ensure that he didn’t ever wonder ‘what would have happened if only ….’.

I’d tell him to treasure every relationship.

I’m sure that there would be plenty to tell that young boy. There are lessons that I’ve had to learn the hard way that would have been easier if someone had the right words to say back then.

Overall, I don’t have many regrets but I certainly wouldn’t want to go back and do it all over again. I’ve had a pretty good life so far and while it’s likely that I’ve passed the half way mark already, I still feel as if life is just beginning in some ways. I’m also finding that a lot of the advice that I would give that young boy is the kind of advice that I’m giving or need to give to the two young lives God has entrusted to me now.

If you could go back and give some advice to yourself when you were very young, what would you say?



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Perth Cycling

June 1, 2009
by Rodney Olsen
2 Comments

bike_parts.jpgThe best place to connect with cyclists around the world remains BikeForums. It’s been going for years and the information you can find there is amazing.

For those of us who live in Perth, Western Australia there is a local forum which will prove to be very useful if enough people register and use it regularly. The problem is that such a forum is fishing from a much smaller pond for its members. Any such forum needs to reach some kind of critical mass for it to be truly effective.

That’s why I thought I’d give Perth Cycling and its associated Perth Cycling Forums a bit of a plug today. I’m in no way associated with the site or forums. I simply reckon it’s a great opportunity for local cyclists and I’d hate to see it disappear through lack of support.

Perth Cycling is the main website which has some excellent links and information.

This site has been set up to provide any person new to cycling or new to Perth, a central point of reference to help them find group rides, race information, race results, forums, classifieds and blogs.

While the site is primarily aimed towards group road riding and racing, those behind the site are willing to develop it into whatever users require.

Perth Cycling Forums gives you the opportunity to interact with other local riders. You’ll find everything there from classifieds to local ride information and advice from other cyclists in your area.

If you are from Perth and you ride a bike, can I encourage you to check out the website and forums. I’m hoping that membership of the forums will grow and that we’ll see some interesting discussions develop.



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