I stopped at a gas station and noticed him sitting on a bench near his bike. Just sitting there alone. I walked over to tell him how much I admired his Ducati motorcycle. He said that he had just purchased it new off the showroom floor and planned to ride somewhere for a coffee. I asked him to join me on a backroads ride to Howling Cow Cafe' about 20 miles away.

He shared with me at the coffee shop what had happened just 3 weeks before. His wife passed away. He said that her wish for him was to buy a new motorcycle because she knew his love for the sport.

Certainly, nothing I could say would help to heal the pain, but it seemed that riding his new motorcycle to a coffeeshop with a new friend did indeed help. He was so proud of the engineering behind this red Italian masterpiece. He loved the sound of the motor and described its handling on the route we had just ridden together.

How I regret losing his contact information, but my hope is that he has found healing along the roads we love to ride.