I was going to title this, “Susie’s getting sick of surprises with Subaru’s,” and as I was typing it, I realized this was not a true statement. “Go ahead, surprise me again honey, I’m ready! I can take it! I think.”
So, after 11 months of faithful service, my Subaru said no more.
A week after I threw the timing belt, Dave came home with the title to another one. “I don’t want another car,” I cried when our attempt to fix my ride failed. “I love my Subaru!” I guess he thought that finding another one would fix my attitude. At least it fixed my excuse for isolating, which he is sure to not let me do for too long.
Identical to my previous 2000 Subaru Outback with one exception – I now have a wagon instead of a sedan. Oh, and different color of course. My point was to be that all things are interchangeable and the first thing we did was swap out the tires. Mine were newer and better. We talked about some other things I like better about my crapped-out car, but who knows if we will ever get around to swapping inside stuff before this one also decides to no longer take our road.
While I am grateful to be mobile, I liked the other one better. When it ran, anyway. However, there are some funny things about the whole thing, sort of. Right before the timing belt on my maroon Subaru blew, I was thinking it would be nice if my trunk were a hatch-back instead, and open. At the same time, Dave was thinking of getting a tow package put on, as he had just read that our small McKee Craft was light enough for it.
And yep, you guessed it, this one has all that.
So while Dave was busy being totally amazed by all of this and laughing his little heart out, I was telling God that this was not what I had in mind at all. A tiny chuckle escaped my chest, however, as God’s sense of humor did not escape my attention. And since there are bigger fish I would like to fry, I shall simply remain grateful for my mobility, in whatever it may be!
** Addition to original post:
The circumstances under which we got this car originally caused me concern. Not of the legality or anything like that, but because the previous owner apparently lost it due to financial issues with it, it was ultimately towed and sold by the towing company. So not knowing the circumstances, I thought it was possible that the previous owner could be mad about it, and seeing me driving down the road in it could set someone off, perhaps. So I decided that I would not drive anywhere near town with it. I more than decided, I let my husband know about this decision several times. Several times a day, at first. My fear was showing.
At any rate, a month later, forgetting all about it, we went into town to buy an air conditioner at BrandSmart, where you wait at the dock outside for your purchase, and up walks a guy, looking me over like he knows me, but doesn’t. Well, it does not register with me one bit that it might be the car he knows, and as I start to nudge Dave to turn his attention from the dock and ask if he knows this guy, the stranger walked right up to us and slowly asked, “Mary?” “No,” I replied, still not thinking anything of this car, and he says, “I didn’t think so, you don’t really look like her, but this is her car! I know it’s her car, I have worked on it many times, this is her wrecked bumper, yep, this corner, yep, this is her car! But you’re not Mary!” Super surprised, I stared at Dave, speechless.
So not to make this short story any longer, it turns out that he is a mechanic, retired, and works on select cars on the side, mine being one of them, and he would be happy to keep working on it as I need. The kicker here? Just the day before, Dave and I were talking about how all the “back-yard mechanics” we have known have either moved or died, and I exclaimed, “We need to find a mechanic who works out of their house and doesn’t have all those shop fees!” And what do you know?
Never underestimate the power of your words, and more importantly, the power of God.
susieraffey.com 