A Most Beautiful Day with Friends: Biking and Farmers Market Saturday
- Stan Hecht
- Aug 12
- 6 min read
I’m riding my sparkly, purple bike on a gorgeous Saturday in early August and riding beside me is Emily. One of the kindest, loveliest, smartest women I have the privilege of calling friend. The idea for today’s fun was a four-way collaboration. Emily and Matt love Farmers’ Markets, Emily just bought herself a bike and has become a riding fiend, I’ve been riding twice a week on the Madison County (very flat and scenic) Trails in Edwardsville and Stan, the Griddle Guy has perfected his smashburgers.
We decided to combine all three of these activities on a Saturday. If I am remembering correctly, we were with Emily and Matt enjoying burgers at The Mack in South City and talking about biking, the fun of a Farmers Market and the opportunity to enjoy a swimming pool. We looked at each other and said, “Sign me up!”
Emily is great at committing to fun activities. She’s taught me to be forthright about plans and to say, “yes” or “no” and try to find a date and a plan that works. I love her texts, as I know there will always be some sort of conclusion.
The four of us have had great times hanging out. We’ve been dancing at The Trainwreck at Westport Plaza with The John Hughes Experience, enjoyed burgers and Ted Drewes one evening and once Emily and Matt came to Stan’s to play music and bake. That was a fun evening together. Emily and I used the Broma Bakery cookbook while Stan and Matt rocked out.
On this Saturday we decided to meet at the trailhead in Glen Carbon, ride ten miles and then head to The Land of Goshen Community Market in downtown Edwardsville-one of my favorite Farmer’s Market’s around. https://www.goshenmarket.org/
On my twice weekly rides I usually ride ten miles in an hour. It’s a perfect ride for me-long enough to be challenging, but short enough that I cause no injuries.
Emily had asked if we could ride to the Market from the bike trail. Because I only ride three miles out, three miles in and then two miles in and out on another trail I had no idea. Meeting Emily and Matt at the trailhead early Saturday, we had a discussion and Emily pulled out her phone to check GPS. Surprise! We COULD indeed ride to the Market on this trail!
It was a morning of trying new things! We could ride to the Market, spend time enjoying the goods and the vendors and then ride back. I was very excited to discover this opportunity. Something new? A new direction? A challenge? Yes. Yes. Yes.
Emily looked at me and said, “And we can do this together.” I loved that, too.
It hadn’t occurred to me that we could do this. While the trail system extends for miles and it’s very well maintained, it is a little confusing which trail goes where. There are many forks in the road. And not just physically.
Emily and Matt put the Market in their GPS, Stan started his walk, and Emily, Matt and I started our ride towards Edwardsville. The plan was to meet where the trail ended near Lewis and Clark Community College and switch over to riding on sidewalks. Stan would put my bike in his car, and we would then drive to the Market meeting Emily and Matt riding on the sidewalk. I actually could have ridden the sidewalk to the Market, but we stuck with this plan.
Matt easily pulled ahead zipping along and Emily and I set a pace of 10 mph which allowed us to move along the trail enjoying the greenery and wildlife (including cardinals) and chat. I LOVE chatting with Emily. She’s a deep thinker with intentional ideas and well-formed thoughts. I always learn something from her whether it’s about her life, life in general or confirmation that I’m living in the direction I want to be. She asks good, solid, heart-centered questions, and then listens and provides invaluable insight, she’s honest and we always laugh. I love friends like this!
More importantly, I love friends who are so easy to be with and spend time with them. I’m at that point in life where time is a gift and I want to hang out. As often as possible. Real life hanging out: sharing our experiences, laughing, crying, enjoying one another. Tell me anything. Sitting together. Swimming together. Riding together. Practicing yoga together. Traveling together. Scheming together. Danzing together. Whatever it is, Emily reminded me of the importance of BEING with friends. Just BEING.
Emily and I rode five miles together chatting the entire time. Reaching Lewis and Clark, Stan picked me up, Emily rode to the market, and we all ended up at The Land of Goshen Community Market. Emily and Matt headed for coffee meeting us at the Feed Your Greens table. Todd Peterson, the microgreens farmer, had my sunflower greens and between us, we bought four packs feeling healthier by the minute.
We wandered over and stopped to say hey to Kara Hayes at one of my favorite tables. Irie Elements. Oh, I love everything Kara had and makes! She is more than a jewelry designer. She is a deep soul who sees what you need! One of my favorite parts of the Market is Kara. I love touching base with her to see what she’s newly created, how she’s doing and catching up. She always has a smile and is wearing one of her creations.
Last year, she made a pair of peace earrings for me that are not only the perfect size, but the perfect fit for me. I’ve been looking for years, and Kara had a pair of peace earrings that were just a little too big. She made these dime-size and even delivered them to me.
I always stop by to say hi and listen as customers talk to her about what they want and need. I have a few items from her. Every piece has wrapped silver and a story. Often her pieces are named for something or someone. This year she created a love knot for her teen-age daughter. Her husband
helped with part of it. I fell immediately in love with the necklace and asked if she could make hanging, dangling earrings with love knots. “Of course! You always help me remember to make smaller versions of my ideas,” she added. Well, happy to help! https://www.facebook.com/irieelements/
irieelements-Kara Hayes
Emily liked the jewelry as much as I did and it was fun to introduce Kara to her. Emily peeled off to find Matt while Stan and I walked around to find peaches and listen to the music. When we connected, Emily and Matt had found Candice Watson and relayed her story, so Stan and I headed there and chatted with her. Recognizing her jewelry, it turns out she and Kara are cousins! Candice started the children’s farmers program Market Sprouts and lucky for us, Sharon, the founder of the Market strolled by and we were able to meet her. What a rich history this Market has!
After two hours, we hopped on our bikes and headed back to the trailhead to head to Stan’s for smashburgers and swimming.
The previous Thursday had been cloudy and cool, and we had just returned from Chicago. I had wanted a cookie the entire trip, never finding one that looked good to me. I know, it’s Chicago! So, I spent the day baking. I made chocolate chip bar cookies (my specialty) and chocolate mint brownies, which I had been wanting to try. (It’s easy to be green!)
Stan manned the griddle, we pulled out the peaches we bought, store- bought Greek pasta salad and hummus and chips. I also whipped up pina coladas and we enjoyed a pool-side lunch. Then we jumped into the pool, enjoying the cool water and sunny day. A rite of passage at Stan’s pool is a trip down the slide which Emily and Matt gladly did. Honestly, I need to start taking pictures because people coming down the slide have the best expressions. We played a few rounds of basketball and then just floated and chatted.
Both Emily and Matt liked the chocolate mint brownies (I had tasted them the day before and thought they were quite good) and I happily sent them home with a few.
Emily had brought us home-made sourdough bread which was beautiful and a vase of wildflowers.
Too soon it was time for Emily and Matt to head out back to St. Louis. We all hugged each other and thanked one another for a fun, event-filled Saturday. As they drove away, I realized how much fun it was to spend the day with Emily, Matt, and Stan. We had combined all the activities we enjoyed (need to add guitar playing next time), spent time outside and visited the Farmer’s Market. In addition, we all tried something new, a new direction and a new challenge. While enjoying the company, the sunshine, and the freedom of the day. We had quite the day with the sparkly purple bike, our enjoyment of farmers’ markets and love of burgers as well as our idea of hanging out together. How often do we make time to just BE?
Thanks, Emily, and Matt for making the drive, and finding the correct trail to ride.
Thanks Stan, for the smashburgers and your hospitality.
Expect Good. Defy Gravity! Sparkle ON! Make time to spend with friends!
For more St. Louis Girl Storytelling blogs and St. Louis Girl Podcasts and to
find out how I empower people to discover and use their voice through
storytelling:
Comments