Ep 118: Do Badass Life Goals! Mary Beall Adler Leaves for Tour D'Afrique at Age 65

Do Badass Life Goals! At Age 65, the Remarkable Mary Beall Adler Bikes the Epic Tour D'Afrique. Mary leaves to bike the continent of Africa at Tour D'Afrique. Get inspired to do epic things, heal your body, and reverse your age. How do you decide to do a huge crazy goal? Pick up some mindset shifts for your New Years goals as Slayer checks in with long time podcast guest, Mary Beall 

Support Mary on the Ride!

http://bitly.com/PoweredByMary

Follow Mary on Social to root her on Creativity Coaching for Peace | Mary Beall Adler

Other Heartsing Podcast Episodes with Mary:

Ep #37: Follow Your Heart - with Mary Beall Adler
https://www.buzzsprout.com/1433275/8864623-ep-37-follow-your-heart-with-mary-beall-adler.mp3?download=true
Ep #54: Grow Younger: Sleep, Age Reversal, Gut Health Biohacking with Mary Beal Adler
https://www.buzzsprout.com/1433275/9495670-ep-54-grow-younger-sleep-age-reversal-gut-health-biohacking-with-mary-beal-adler.mp3?download=true

Ep #99: The Inspiring Mary Beall Adler: Epic Goals, Meditation, Health, Cold Therapy
https://www.buzzsprout.com/1433275/11122848-ep-99-the-inspiring-mary-beall-adler-epic-goals-meditation-health-cold-therapy.mp3?download=true

Mary Beall Adler is a successful entrepreneur with the heart of an artist. A small business owner for more than 25 years, Adler is the visionary behind the Georgetown Bagelry, popular retail and wholesale bakery in the Washington, D.C., metropolitan area, and author of Who Scooped My Bagel?: One Woman's Story of Love, Loss, and Success.

In 2023, Mary will be riding the Tour d’Afrique, a 6,850-mile ride down the length of the continent of Africa to raise money for women-led bike businesses in Tanzania - businesses that accelerate the hard work of rural entrepreneurs to provide for their families. Mary is pledging to raise $100,000 for globalbike and asks for your support and invites you to celebrate the strength and power of women.

http://bitly.com/PoweredByMary

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Transcript

Hi everyone, welcome to the Heartsing podcast, Addie Beall here. And I am so excited for our guest today. She's a longtime mentor of mine, one of my coaches, and just an incredible woman. I consider her like a sister to me. And it's Mary Beall ad Adler, as you see here. And she, we also call her the spark ator,

the biohacker and her passion around increasing her quality and longevity of life that you're gonna just really get a good glimpse into. In this episode, I wanted to share a little bit about Mary with you. She's a successful entrepreneur, author of who scooped my bagel, one woman's Story of Love, loss and success, a creativity coach and human potential coach, owner and c e o of the Georgetown Bakery,

a retail wholesale, wholesale BA bakery in dc. And Mary is also sought after expert in women's leadership work-life balance issues. She has a heart for philanthropy, which you'll hear more about today, cycling, yoga, meditating, reading, playing piano and teaching, meditative, spin, spinning. Oh my gosh, mayor, how's that make you feel? Catching my breath,

right? Yeah. So Mary, if, if you have been a longtime listener of the podcast, you might be familiar, Mary, this is her fourth episode. I can't believe that I've had a podcast long enough. You've been on here four times, much less how we've seen you move through the process to get to this big epic goal you're getting ready to take off and do.

And just a few short weeks going to do tour dph freak and biking the Continent. Continent. I know I say that funny, but like of Africa, which is just mind blowing. I, I think there was a part of me, mayor, don't judge me, but that was like, this isn't really gonna happen. You know what I mean?

Like, Mary's not gonna go do this thing. Was there ever a part of you that had, that had that thought? Yes. Yeah, absolutely. Like, like every day. Like, Okay, like, like, okay, what's gonna come up that could possibly make me change my decision and all, you know, all of the little things that have led up to where I am in the process right now.

And, and oh, there have been plenty. There have been plenty. And the, the most, probably the, the one that sticks out right now is, you know, making sure that the business, the bagel business, Georgetown Bagelry, you know, it's not rocket science. And you know, we've been around a long time, but there has been,

there have been changes and unstoppable. My daughter Aretha is operations right now and she's running it, but she's also a new mother, just had a baby. And, and I have every ounce of confidence in her and her abilities, you know, she just is like better at it than i I ever was, I think. But there have been moments,

you know, and I'm like, oh, you know, so I mean, one of the things I've learned over the years is backup for the backup, you know, and just really pulling together a, a good team. So I, you know, I really have a great bookkeeper and accountant and financial controls and stuff like that, that are really important for any business.

So, so, so that was one of, that was one of the things that I take my responsibility as c e o and owner as very, you know, one of my responsibilities that I take like super seriously is running a profitable business and company. And I, and I've worked too hard for too many years to learn and understand and make that happen.

So any little glitch there, kind of, you know, that's, that, that's a game changer for, for me. And then I have to really look at myself and I'm, you know, I'm, I'm just not ready to bow out of that scene just yet because it's not quite where I wanted to be, you know, my vision for that business.

So that's one of the things. Well, and I think, yeah, well, and I think that that whole topic could be a whole podcast itself, right? Right. Just talking today about, share with everybody a little bit about, it's been, I think, what a four year journey for you leading up to this point because of how many times it got derailed,

all of that. Can you tell the audience, and especially for those new to us, that what, what is this exactly you're going to do? Why? And for God's to sake, Mary, why, and, and how, you know, I mean the whole tent thing, like, you know, just share with them how epic this is.

I, I think we really need that picture painted of oh my gosh, this is a huge thing you're going to do. It's not like you're staying in posh hotels along the way and getting like, I mean, it's, this is hardcore like stuff and you know, people out there and even if they can see, you also couldn't guess your age,

you know, like, because, you know, we know biologically you test younger than me if everybody caught the episode. No, I don't. I don't. I'm two years older, Two years My big sister. So anyhow, you know, being 65 and heading off to do what you're gonna share with everyone right now, what an example of what is possible and why.

Like, I am always watching what you're doing and listening and learning. So you guys out there listen, pay attention cuz you never know what nugget you're gonna pick up from Mary. I just listen to it all and then I'll pick up one little thing and it'll be a paradigm shift for me and help me move into that space because you're out there doing it,

actively moving yourself forward. So tell us a little bit about what the heck this tour death freak is exactly. And maybe a little bit about global bike too, and then we'll head into all those obstacles you're coming up to against, you know, that came up for you. Okay. So how I even deci I decided that this was something I wanted to do.

There were a few things, synchronicities that happened in my life. One was, you know, I had already cycled across the country, had a huge crash, went back and, you know, I didn't understand, had a lot of fear over what happened then, didn't. And I really was kind of stuck there. So I went back and did it again.

And I wanted to, and, and I learned so much from that experience. It just changed my life in many, many ways. It's basically facing the unknown and my fears and, and I learned how to, you know, like there are certain goals going into something like this and, you know, that crash altered everything. Like it wasn't cycle every inch,

which is like basically what everybody wants to do. The easy decision, this is kind of important. This is how I make decisions because I bet anyway, the easy thing for me to do when I crash, I had a concussion. I, I had more injuries than I even realized until I got home and had things x-rayed I go home. And,

which was easy to do in the United States, pretty much, I mean, we were kind of remote, but you could get to an airport, people speak English or do I finish, what would finishing look like, injured? Could I ride again? So all kinds of things and, and actually when I, I decided I was gonna finish, even if it was in the sag the support vehicle,

and I was gonna be the strongest team person I could possibly be. I don't have to be stronger than anybody else or any of that as strong as I could be in support everybody else and in the process heal. So it changed everything. But when I, so it took about, it took some time before I could get back on the bike and all of that,

but I didn't quit. It changed my goal and then going back and doing again and, and seeing it from a different lens, a different perspective was also lifeing. So, So it, so it changed your goal from just biking the continent to a vi biking across America being a great Team player, to being a great team person, Right? It's Like you hear,

hear about it in basketball now, some of these fam, some of the famous players are like, you, you know, you're on the bench, you'd be the best bench person you possibly can be. You're on the whatever that's that, you know, like shift. It's like, what cannot, what can I not do? What can I do today in this moment to be the best version of me?

What's gonna make me, you know, it's like what I put on my daily planner, Addie is, you know, what, what's the greatest ideal of myself and how do I become that? And so part of the plan is, you know, asking myself those questions right where I am. I don't have to fly someplace to do that. Like home where it's comfortable,

where I know everything, where everything's the same, you know? Yeah. So I'm, I'm kind of testing myself and my ex my how I look at myself and the universe. So anyway, going. So, so that was on that second time through, you know, you talk to all day, you're on your bike and you're talking to everybody and you hear each other's life stories and all of that.

And somebody had mentioned Torre, so that kind of like rang a bell. It was somebody, you know, one of the British guys. And then I was listening, this was way later, and I was having a hard time cycling because it's a whole different kind of riding when you have a place to go or an adventure to do. It's not racing,

it's not yet we race, you know, but it's not, it's just a whole different experience and the people you meet along the way and, and sometimes, you know, it's just fascinating to me. It was just fascinating. It's like going across the country, slow motion, six feet above when you, You know what that's like for me, walking to a co the coffee shop versus just walking the neighborhood.

Not quite as epic as what you're talking about, but it's like when you have a destination, destination where of where you're going. And that's why, why having goals, right? It really helps you picture that outcome so you can, like what version gets me to become the person that does this thing? Yeah. How can I tweak me, you know?

Basically. Yeah. Yeah. So you were sharing Some podcasts and there was some woman that wrote across Canada or something, and there's a Guinness World record for oldest woman crossing continents. And, and then, so I, you know, I researched it a little bit and this is seven Epics, and I found t d a tour Dre and the seven Epics,

and I signed up for them. I'm like, oh, I can do that and I better start now. I better do the hardest one first because I'm not getting younger. Right. But I actually, that was my thinking, right? Yeah. No, Addie, have I gotten younger 15 years? Yeah. Right. So I'm saying this up,

I'm not getting younger, but I did. Yes, yes. It's, and that was an episode 54 on here. We talked about that, about Mary reversing her age. So I'll drop that in the show notes for people that are curious. How do, what are you talking about reversing your age? Yeah, Biohacking. But yeah, the, the,

the, the important thing is I caught my own thinking, like I'm not getting older. I'm like, whoa. You know, is that true? Could the opposite be true? Yeah, the opposite is true for me. So, so, so I, you know, I signed up for it and then, you know, different things came up and was postponed,

postponed, pandemic. And you know, a couple of my friends that, that are really great cyclists and stuff, they, and I was trying to kind of recruit a few women, you know, to go on, on this with me. And they were like, how do you make a decision like this? And in my entire life, this goes way back probably to college,

it was like, when I don't know what to do, like I have a decision to make or what am I gonna do next or whatever. And I, and I just really get still and I listen to my heart and, and, and I, and I don't pick like typically what's easy I pick what's gonna mature me most as Mary, you know,

like what, what would make me the most interesting me that I wanna be? And it's usually the more difficult thing. So I just make the decision because I know that I wanna be that, and then I figure out how to do it. Yeah. So good. It's who you become in the process of getting to go to do something like Tour Dre,

right? Like the experience is going to be something all on its own. So tell tell everybody like about tour Daph freak, like why this is such a big epic thing. Like explain what what you're doing specifically Epic, because it's, it started off, well, it is a race, so Cairo, the north, north northern Africa to Cape Town.

So you, you basically cycle the whole continent now. And typically it's 78. We cut about a thousand miles, maybe a little bit less this, this year. I postponed last year because they modified the route and I didn't wanna do a modified version of tour afric. This we're flying over Ethiopia because there's been social unrest and it's basically just unsafe. So we're,

we're actually flying from cartoon to Nairobi, which is a chunk of the tour, but it's still about, oh, I don't know how many miles. It's a lot of miles. It's a lot. So anyway, you, you go through all kinds of terrain, desert mountains, you go up to elevation, I believe Tanzania is about 7,000 feet up,

66, 7,000 feet up. It's kind of like Colorado, like Beaver Creek. So you know, you're going to elevation, you're up there and then you come cut, cut back down and cross over the state and end up in, in Cape Town. And it's supported. So we have a chef, we have a mechanic, we have like a,

a lantern rouge is what they call in like a, an oat route race. But you know, somebody that pulls up the rear to make sure no, nobody's lost. There will be security on some of the places where it's, you know, less safe like police escorts and stuff like that. It's, it's pretty remote. I just, I just received the routes and so I'm printing all of the maps and the maps and routes and downloading to my garment.

And then we have backup for the backup. I even got the, oh, this is my, it's a Garmin watch, so I have, I have a Garmin watch and just a regular Garmin navigation device that you put on your bike. I have both. So it's back up for the backup. Yeah. So it's, and it's, so it's supported,

but you're sleeping intense. Yes. So, so you bike like 180 miles a day, 60 to 80 miles or something like that. And then you get to a site and you set up camp and then you go bike the next day. Yeah. So I was looking at the route and it kind of varies. Like the longer day, I think the most miles,

miles, miles or kilometers we do in a day. Well, miles we do in a day is like, hun it's more than I've ever done in one day. It's about 115, 120. That's a lot of miles. But, you know, people do it. I, I don't know, it's not like it's never been done before. By that time I should be in pretty good,

good shape, you know. But the thing is, there's, there's so many unknowns. Like I, I personally do not like cycling in the D desert. You know, the heat, there is a section of the tour that gets super hot, like 105 notoriously. So, you know, you just have to be prepared for the elements. And then,

you know, you, you, you know, after cycling all day with whatever comes up, you pitch your tent, you know, and then get up, do the same thing the next day. So putting the tent up and down, I mean, I'm sure we, after a couple weeks we'll be whipping 'em out and whipping 'em up. And one of my main concerns for this for tour after week is,

you know, hygiene, there'd be places where water will have to really conserve water for hydration. So, you know that, and not having showers and stuff as often as we're used to, I'm really enjoying being in Miami right now with the water. I don't, I really, really appreciate it. Cause I know I won't have it for a long time.

Yeah, for sure. I mean, so you mentioned water in Addie. One thing I was gonna say though, about three years ago when I was in, actually in Tucson with a, a group of riders and we were going around the room and it's a, a training camp and everybody was, they asked, okay, your goals, your name,

your goals, you know, basic stuff to get to know each other. And when I said, my goal is to ride tour dri and they're all looking at, they have like a fell off their chairs. And I'm like, all I could think was watch and learn, you know? And I'm telling you, for the next two years I've done more camps and,

and I know it is not the most, it's very competitive group and stuff, but I'm like, oh, I'm laying low. Yeah. Because Mentally there's a whole mental aspect to this. I'm like, why would I train so hard and hard? Plus I'm older, you know, wear my body out for what and for why. So I, so I really kind of had to think,

how can I really prepare for the unknown? How can I be as physically, physically mentally fit? And not just for cycling, you know, off any kind of medications, be able to heal myself was a big one. So if I'm in the middle of nowhere, and yeah, we have a whole medic plan and the malaria pills and all of that,

but, you know, say you crash in the middle of nowhere, what are you gonna do? Well, I can tell you what I'm gonna do. Yeah, I will. You're gonna meditate, you're gonna I'll, you know, I, I, yeah, I, I will heal. So Yeah, I mean that's a whole conversation right there.

But it's, but it's taken a lot of practice to learn to, to really understand and know, have the skills to get where I am right now. Like yesterday I went to the, I think, I think I was telling you about this, but the hi, the joint specialists. So I wanted to have x-rays of my hips and some different issues.

You know, I have like different issues from different things in, in my life and before I go, so like after, after all the war and terror, just, you know, what I've kind of learned in with the healing process is if I have a vision, if I know what something's supposed to look like, then I can create that, you know,

I can change, I can change matter, but I can't change it if I don't know what I'm changing it to, you know, it's like Random Right. What you're looking for. Yeah. So I go in and, and I, I have like the every last medical thing that you could possibly think of. And I'm so incredibly healthy right now.

I wasn't, I was like in tears because my hips have actually, I started cycling because I had arthritis and my hips, my hips, the x-rays. I still have arthritis in my hips. But I've, I've, I've hacked a bunch of stuff and I take different supplements and I, I do really healthy things and I swear they look so much better now.

I did not tell the doctor, he didn't have the old X-rays, but, oh my goodness. And he, he kept asking me, how old are you? He didn't ask me just once I, it's like, he didn't believe me. Yeah. I mean, it's really, really phenomenal. Yeah. So, I mean, I've been watching.

Yeah. I'm just really, really grateful. Talk a little bit about, well, let me ask you this first. What do you think the biggest change is going, the biggest outcome is going to be from you having this experience, the biggest change in your life. Oh, I imagine I'll be a, a different person at the end. I,

I, I'll be, you know, I have this vision. I can just see my husband at the end in Cape Town. Yeah. And what happens? So what happens after that point? Like what, what did you change that you carry beyond that? You're not just a person that did to, or dreek, but like who, who are you becoming in that process,

right? Like what, what is it, how does it change fundamentally who you are? I'll just be a better me. And, and what, what that is. I'm not really clear right now, but it'll be pretty magnificent, I'm sure. Yeah. I'm Just gonna embrace my genius and, and I think there's more to me than I, than I really see,

and hopefully I'll get glimpses of what that is in other people's eyes along the route. Yeah. Do you, when you think of doing this, and we, it's been four years and then you got derailed with Covid and all of those things came up. Injuries Yeah. Injuries, all of that. Like, were there times you just thought about giving up?

No, No, no. Yeah. So you Just No mean it made up my mind. I think everybody around me was hoping I would, I would like change my mind, but I'm like, you know, and there's family, there's, you know, there's a lot that goes into this. I mean, if I didn't have such a terrific husband,

you know, he's like my biggest support. And, and you, I I, I just really cherish that. You know, somebody that's like, yeah, I mean really like, wanted me not to go and change my mind and do all of that, but Yeah. Well, and how long you're gone for what, four months? Yeah, just about.

And you leave January, when do you fly out? I leave DC on the 10th. Oh my gosh. The 10th of January. Oh my gosh, Mary, you guys, it's almost Christmas right now. So that is like, are you nervous? Are you so excited? What's, what emotions in your body when you think about that? Well, I can tell you I had a lot,

a lot of anxiety for, for several months. My H R v, my heart rate variability dropped to like deadline, which is very unusual for me. It's usual typically high. I usually have a lot of deep sleep in my deep sleep, like shrank and it's, it was anxiety and stress and I'm like looking at my life, I'm like, okay,

what is my stress? What is my stress? And it's just so many unknowns and, you know, overthinking what other people are thinking about me. But basically family and, and yeah. So I, you know, I did a, a week long with Dr. Joe that was really important to me in the fall. One last like really boost of understanding and practice and,

and all of that. And, and my H R V went way up during the, the meditation week and then baseline. And I felt terrific, but I didn't understand. I didn't understand it. And since I had, I actually did a coherence healing, which is a lot of people like myself working together and changing the energy in the field. My H R V shot back up,

not where it used to be, but it's doubled up from flat lining. Wow. And, and so that, that, so just, that's just a huge indicator. And so I look at those things. I look at numbers. Yeah. And Mary's talking about Dr. Joe Dispenza and his work with, you know, meditation. Meditation in the quantum field and,

and creating from energy. Right. So it's been a big journey. Yeah. So just cuz you said Dr. Joe, so for people that don't have reference, and we've talked about that in quite a few of the episodes, and meditation in general. Cuz, cuz I'll know what junkies we are, like meditation junkies and Mary like inspired me to go to Dr.

Cho this year, which you guys all know I, I went and did. And it was really an amazing experience to just immerse yourself in meditation like that for a solid week. And the experiences you can like, push yourself beyond, and you've been to so many now working toward this goal. It's another aspect of you that has really become, because of this goal and how you envision being this woman on this,

this healthiest, highest version of yourself on this two or death week. Like, you might not have made those changes in those stops on your path, especially when it got derailed from C O v. And we were sharing a little bit about that. So when you saw your, your goal moving and getting derailed, and this happens to all of us,

right? We're in pursuit of a weight loss goal, we're kicking ass at the gym and all of a sudden our knee goes out. And that was such a part of like our psyche, how we built ourselves around this new version of ourselves that it like completely derails us. And I know you had quite a few of those things. You wanna talk a little bit just how you kept,

how you just seemed to get back on and move yourself toward, toward that space and becoming a better version in the process where a lot of us could just like, fuck it. Like, for lack of a better term, screw it. I'm, I'm done. Like look, this is the universe just showing I can't do it, it's just giving me this,

this bum knee or whatever it might be, right? Like, so y you wanna share a little bit how you change your reality and move through those things. Yeah, so one of the things I've learned mostly I I just through knocks of life, but it really applies to business too. And when the pandemic hit, not only did it alter my plans for toured AF week,

but with the business, with basically everything in life, probably pretty much like everybody. So through other struggles in my life, I learned that well, number one faced, face it, get all the information, listen to my heart, it never lies to me. And do the next right thing. And, and, and typically that is not what everybody else would do.

And I would, and I always ask myself, what's the opportunity in the adversity? And there's that business, pat, pat jolly quote that even in the Knox of life, they're great gifts. So I look for the gifts in in that. And you know, my son was working with me at the time when the, you know, we businesses were going out of business right and left.

And, and that's, I I shut down socially, distanced all the employees and renovated, put money into the business when everybody else is like really holding tight to everything they have. Also, like doing all the paperwork, making sure you get the p p P stuff, boom, boom, boom, boom fast. And, and it's like not hesitating.

And, and I noticed even other, you know, I'm involved with W P l, women's President's organization and you know, we have our forums and everything went virtual and people were like really questioning, you know, do we do this or that. I'm like, these systems are in place to protect or whatever, you can take advantage or not. But man,

you gotta jump on this stuff and, and you also have to have your ts crossing your eyes dotted, you know, like your books in order and you know, the little details of stuff. So my son's looking at me like I'm nuts, but I'm like, no, this is what we're gonna do. This is when we take action, we do what nobody else would do.

And, You know, so was that an obstacle to you getting to your tour, tour dri goal? Although, I mean, does this It all went together? Yeah. For, well, yeah, because it was postponed and I'm like, oh, how much can you train for something so you don't know when the world's gonna open it up again.

When anything, how do you keep it? And and what I learned first time going across the United States and crashing was you can, and I trained pretty hard, was super fit. It didn't matter when I crashed Right. Didn't Matter because Oh, that's, that's so good. I Had, it doesn't matter when you crashed you guys Yeah, I love it.

I had to start and go, this was, this was huge for me. Slow and steady. I had to, I wasn't with the fast people. I got a, the early start, but I learned to stop and talk to. I I I just started stopping at every single place, every place on the road where I could meet a new person.

I stopped. I met them, learned about their lives, their everything. You know, You learned to enjoy the journey, which I think is just like, oh that's so, that's so good. Right? I was just writing about that for myself this morning about us having these paths and doing something as epic as you are, Mary. I was really thinking about it and how you have,

just like when that happened, you, I just saw your energy shift into, alright, how can I just enjoy every, like all these, all these things I'm moving through. Right? And you kept training but you backed off and you let it become about these other things like improving your business. Yeah, Yeah. A really interesting thing. So,

so, you know, I asked my question, what's the gift in the adversity? And I thought, okay, I imagine myself in, you know, a, a tough situation someplace remote Africa and what skills do I need emotionally and, you know, to survive, you know, to keep going and not just break down and wanna fly home, you know,

like, And I, and so I started meditating more, you know, we'd already done tea, all the other stuff and, and I was, you know, kind of big into Dr. Joe Dispenza and I started and I was going to a retreat, I think it was my first one I had never been. And I thought, you know,

I, I better learn about this walking meditation. So I just downloaded a couple of 'em and I, you know, was, everybody was isolating, I was the gopher in our house cause I had the business and stuff and I went down on the canal and I started every single day I did a walking meditation and I learned by just slow and steady and changing my energy and being in nature and the early morning light and I saw this really like healthy stuff.

Then I noticed on my aura ring that that hour from a training perspective was one of the healthier hours of my day because your heart rate raises to like low end endurance or maybe just a little lower than that. Very, you know, up but low. I, and I'm talking slow and steady and you know, I'm meditating for an hour, but I noticed that heart rate steady for an hour was one of the healthiest things I ever did.

Now if I go out and ride my bike for, you know, however, it doesn't even matter how long it's up and down. You're going up a hill, down a hill, you coast, da da da da, you might do intervals, but it's not that one hour of just study. So even 20 minutes is like amazing. Most people don't,

you know, that's like amazing. But an hour every day and now it's just like what I do. You know? Yes. So that, And, and that wouldn't have all happened had you not had the delay. You know, it's like looking back and seeing all the blessings that came out of the delay and who knows what it's preparing you for that's ahead,

that you're gonna be like, oh thank goodness. You know, it puts you in that position. You know, thank goodness the world stopped and slowed down and I was forced to kind of reevaluate and look at things. It allowed you to go to many more retreats and you know, like it's just brought so many gifts your way. For sure. And just a note to listeners on meditation,

you know, cuz we're talking about Dr. Joe, but Mary mentioned TM in there a couple times. If you haven't started a meditation practice and I know you're out there hearing and you're like, oh my gosh, where do I even go? You know, transcendental meditation, primordial sound meditation that I teach our mantra-based meditation's a really great place to start and learn how to,

how to focus and learn how to sit still like, like 20 minutes even like Mary said. And then when you're, and Dr. Joe's work to me was like a deep acceleration of that place. I was already, I was grateful. I I felt like I stepped into that work already having some training of my mind and my being, you know what I mean,

mayor. So anyhow, just thought I'd add that for people out there. But so with this future self version of yourself, cuz you know, I'm a, I'm a future self junkie mayor. So what is she at the end that you aren't right now already because you're pretty often fabulous from where I'm sitting. Like what, like when you, when you see Jonathan at the end and you're there,

what, what is in that vision that you don't yet possess right now? Well that's a good nothing because I see that so clearly. Nothing really, I mean, no, I mean it will just be a beautiful moment. Yeah, you already are. There's, You know, the, i i some things I have no idea that I haven't even tried to visualize other than the first day.

So it, it's gonna be wild. It's gonna be a sensory. Yeah. Well and so in talking about Africa a little bit, and you've talked about the different terrains and just to bring up global, global bike your cause too, cuz that kind of weaves in with everything. And when you said water, I remember when I was looking on the site thinking,

oh my gosh, they have pictures of like how these bicycles are helping women. You can carry four times the amount of water. You guys, they spend eight to nine hours a week carting water from a safe spot to their homes. Right? And so they can add four times more. It's allowing women to be more active in or to have businesses and to be able to sustain their villages cuz the men are all off what fighting and hunting and,

and doing those the they're not as as present. Right. And that it looks like the women's money too. When we invest in the women, they're more likely to reinvest in their community than the men. So this cause you've picked in Africa, which also speaks to like when I'm gonna put the link in the show notes and I want you all to go and check out global bikes and,

and look and see, and you'll get an idea of the wilderness Mary will be going through and the third world country, the countries you'll be experiencing the, the fighting, right? The war will you be going through war zones and things like that? No, the route goes around. Things like that or Okay. Where our route goes, it was Ethiopia and I believe they've come to a truce,

but we're still flying over. So other than that, I don't think so. Yeah, so anything, anything else you can share about, about Global Bike and just Africa maybe from that standpoint and helping our sisters over there and why? Yeah. Global Bike is unique because it's a very small nonprofit and I, I came across Global Bike via my cycling coach Josh Whitmore,

who's a, just a phenomenal c t s cycling coach mountaineer, stuff like that. And when I was cycling across the United States, I asked him what he thought because I had some different ideas and he connected me to the head of Global Bike at the time. And it's, it's all shifted over the years, but what really resonated with me was they connected me with one of the women who got up early in the morning,

like three 30 or in a, in a hot and she made rice patties, rice cakes over a wood burning flame in, in the hut. And then she'd roll them out on like a wood coffee table and boil them, you know, make the rice patties, put them in pickle pickle, they're pickle jugs. It's like what we have at the bagel shop,

you get pickles and five gallon plastic containers. They have like two of those on the back of their bike and she'd load 'em up with those and take 'em up the field and sell them to the men that, that were working. But I really identified with her because that's what I did at the bagel shop. You know, I used to get up at,

when we did wholesale sometimes to, you know, they, they would start at one 30 in the morning and I I would go in 2, 3, 4 and did that for many, many years. So at four o'clock in the morning for me, I just love, you know, before the sun comes up, it's peaceful, quiet and you know, she was up baking,

you know, doing what I, I just, that just, yeah, it just totally identified and, and this particular woman, I'd have to go back and look up her name because this was several years, like five years ago or so. She was, she has put her daughters through school and it's just changed that, that her life and her daughters and so access to education,

water having wheels, they ride these bikes are called Buffalo Bikes. They cost about $250 each last forever. And healthcare, so many, many women die in childbirth. So with the bikes they can get to a healthcare facility, which is, you know, nothing like what we have here, but it's something and you know, the kind of care and kindness and,

and stuff that they need and not just them, the healthcare people, nurses and whatever they can get to the villages. So, you know, that's, that's how it, that's what lit my fire and, and really resonated with me because I could, could see it actually making a difference in these women's lives. Well, in over the years they've now,

they have training systems in place and, and the women, like the women that can't read and write are maintenance. Like they, they're mechanics so they, it doesn't mean they can't like fix a bike. Right. And what's, what's wonderful this is, it's not changing the community. Like often what happens in, when people raise a lot of money for something or the men go out and they bring money back to a village,

it changes the, the dynamic of, of the community and what Global Bike has been very careful about doing is maintaining that sense of small community and self sustenance. Yeah. It's just a beautiful thing. So, so that's what I'm doing. And, and, and it's, it's just an opportunity to give back. And, and also I love the fact that so many women are learning about small business,

which is, you know, that's my, that's my mojo and Yeah, it was really, it was really cool. They did a really good job, I think on the, the site and the link where you can see some of these stats about how much you help improve their lives with these bicycles. And you guys, even five bucks, like if everyone listen a dollar,

$10, like whatever you have to, to give, to give to these women to really help them with their communities is amazing and support Mary on the ride. You know, I saw I think you have like 8,000 of your big epic goal already, which is amazing. Really mayor if you think about it. So are you gonna be able to keep us updated while you're on the road?

Like what's that gonna look like? Yeah, well I have a solar panel, I have solar stuff and I have like a hug. Cool. We'll see the wifi will be sketchy, but I, I suppose at least every couple of weeks I'll be able to connect and Marissa who she will probably do the posting for me, but I'll do what I can and you know,

my job is basically stay safe and upright on upright on my bike and, but I'll tell you when people contribute, so many people have given already and unexpectedly that it just really moves me. So I start crying. But I know, you know, on those days it, there will be days Yeah. Where it is tough and, and I just will know that,

you know, I'm not alone. Yeah, yeah. You won't be, I Won't be, you know, I really, you know, hope everybody stays with me and, you know, give gives me shout outs and, and you know, contributes to global bike, a couple cups of coffee, you know, skips, you know, give you Starbucks.

I hope you have Marco Polo. I don't know what I'm gonna do if I don't get my merry, we're gonna Find Out. I know. I need a dump every, every couple weeks. I'll, I'll, I'll I'll record what I can and upload like experts to the podcast or something. Okay. So what, I know you have to go but real,

what do you wanna leave the audience with? You know, as far as like big epic goals we're headed into the new year right here and you're just such an inspiration for moving into a space of fear of like, you know, setting this goal. What is gonna make me the best version of myself and moving forward, what kind of, what, what kind of things do you have for us,

us people that, like my big goal is getting up and walking the coffee shop. Like what, what do you got for us mayor? Gimme some inspiration. Well, A little thing is, you know, take a different road, you know, take a different path each day. Love it. And, and seriously learn your neighborhood and, and,

and make, connect with people's eyes and hearts and, you know, brings some joy to your neighborhood, number one. Number two, like don't dream too small. Dreams do come true. And, and go for it. You know, Go big. I love it. Do that thing that makes your your stomach get excited, right? Listen to your heart Fire.

What lights your fire. Hmm. So good. Mary, thank you so much. I really appreciate you taking the time. We're I can't wait to be checking in with you and thanks so much. Take care.