An American Classic

Here's a musing about a car. I took this photo at my cousin's wedding last year. It was a rainy day and his '55 Chevy looked so good against the grey sky and raindrops! The text below is actually journaling I wrote for a scrapbook page about the car. I'm still not happy with the page, so I'll share the journaling and the photo!

Oh, what feelings our cars evoke! A vehicle like this deserves to be babied; polished and loved until it becomes a part of the family. Matt B's fully-restored beauty reminds me of the blue and white '55 Chevy Bel Air that mom had when I was a kid. It was an old "clunker", but I have so many fond memories of it. I remember the time we drove to San Francisco and points north—just me & my mom together with all her clothes on hangers strung across the back seat! I remember childhood nights; falling asleep on the way home and pretending to stay asleep so I would have to be carried inside.

I was still so young when someone stole that perfect car and I cried and cried when we had to get another one. I knew things would never be the same again; the new car was a practical Japanese economy-mobile. My whole life seemed to change in an instant and it wasn't for many years that I could again appreciate the love of automobiles that we Americans seem to share. [note: I think mom's old car gave me a love for classics and now I'm lucky enough to work in a place where I see beautiful American classics like the one in the photo every day.]