THANKFUL FRIDAY
Cindy Maddera
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My car is in the shop. This week has been an adventure in car pooling and scooter riding. Tuesday was one of those days where we had a goose, a bag of seed and a fox. Only one of us could fit in the rowboat at a time and we all had to get to the other side of the lake. We had several arguments/discussions on the best way to do this. I was pushing the idea of me riding my scooter. Michael was totally against me riding the scooter considering the temperature was thirty two degrees. My attitude shifted over to a you-can’t-tell-me-what-to-do attitude, while Michael was just trying to get us all over to the other side of the lake without the fox eating the goose and the goose eating the bag of seed. I can tell you that I am not handling this without a bit of whining or flopping over with how exhausting the hassle of being down to one vehicle seems to be.
I am a spoiled brat.
For most of our time together, Chris and I barely had one fairly functional vehicle. There were a few rare years where we each had our own fairly functional vehicle and then there were the years where we both had scooters. I say that our vehicles were fairly functional because they always made the kinds of noises that made us believe that the only thing keeping the car going was hopes and dreams. Chris and I had an abundance of both hopes and dreams. We worked at the same place, which made things convenient and when I was teaching yoga, Chris just tagged along. He worked out in the gym while I taught class or joined my class at the studio. We were also fortunate enough to be near to Chris’s brother Brian, who can fix just about any car. Rumor has it that Todd’s/Chris’s Mazda that once hit a cow and had more than a quarter of million miles on it by the time we gave up on it, is still somewhere out there on the road thanks to Brian. I have no idea why now having one vehicle is such a big inconvenience other than I have just grown accustomed to the independence of having my very own car. There are a number of households who do not have any access to a car, the majority of those households are African American. They have to rely on public transportation or a friend just to get to work. Talaura relies on public transit every day. It’s great. When it’s working. Or when you don’t have to cart home bags of groceries. Public transportation is even more unreliable in areas of urban sprawl like much of the midwest.
I have made it to work on time, if not a little early, every day this week. I have made it to various appointments and classes. Michael has been able to continue with his open mic gigs. Our lives have not really been all that disrupted. I know I am privileged, but my reaction to being with out a car this week reminds me just how privileged I am and how easy it is to take that privilege for granted. In fact, I feel a bit ashamed of myself to tell you the truth. I mean, I can make excuses for myself. I was worried that I would need a whole new engine or stressed over coming up with the funds to pay for repairs. All of my excuses can be boiled down to one thing: inconvenience. I am going to be inconvenienced. And it isn’t even a big inconvenience. It will not cause me to lose my job. I will not have to choose between fixing the car and eating. There are too many households that have none of those luxuries.
This is not so much a reminder for me to be grateful for my privileges, but to be empathic, kind, and generous with those who do not have these privileges.