The Ride
BEWARE…the following may cause heartburn or indigestion for hardcore corvette enthusiasts.
Reality is I am a ‘57 Chevy kind of girl but since my Dad’s passing I have recently inherited a 1960 red and white Corvette. Red is my favorite color … lol…and it matches the fridge at The Bellflower. It’s not something I necessarily wanted and I definitely don’t need it. For those enthusiasts, all the serial numbers match(ed) but the parts from the transmission and steering have been respectfully set aside after modifications were made to accommodate my Dad’s declining motor skills.
My Dad was diagnosed with Parkinson’s Disease over fifteen years ago. The progression of the disease was slow through the years. As he aged his ability to walk and use his hands were notably impacted. He had always wanted a corvette and finally decided to purchase one in July 2020. Maybe a last ditch effort, as Toby Keith’s beautifully haunting song “Don’t Let The Old Man In” (inspired by Clint Eastwood) suggests.
In September 2020 I went with my Dad to pick up the car after the modifications were complete. I was supposed to follow him home with the truck. He was unable to get into the car so guess who drove it home! Ha! My Dad drove the truck and made me follow behind him so I wouldn’t go too fast! I don’t know what kind of driver he thought I was but several times he asked if I was going to be all right driving the car. Little did he know it was just a car to me.
To me The Bellflower is about the building and all it represents…family, tradition, gathering. It’s not about the business. Likewise, to me, this corvette is not about the car. It’s about the drive. My Dad ultimately never really sat behind the wheel to take the car for much of a drive. Here “the drive” is the journey. It’s about dreams, bucket lists, perseverance, will power, and smiles.
Keys needed for the drive:
Stop, look, and listen to the heart…Don’t work too much, time slips away.
It’s not about the value perceived by others…modifications may be of greater value to you than others.
Life will throw you curveballs…it’s not what happens to you but how you respond.
Positivity and a smile go a long way.
It’s possible you might catch me taking a casual drive in Plainwell for breakfast at The Barbed Wire Cafe, or grabbing a sandwich or salad at River Road Foods and always my favorite Cougar Tracks Ice Cream in a waffle cone from Plainwell Ice Cream. Give me a honk as I attempt to set the compass for true north: to live authentically, to cherish time with loved ones, don’t overwork, to pursue what brings joy, to forgive and let go, to take risks (pursue dreams and passions), to find joy in the present. The elderly can give directions by far better than google maps.
You know I might even attend a car show every now and then. Vintage cars tend to rev up nostalgia…although there’s not much nostalgia in the car itself for me. I’ll kick back all the while thinking as people walk by… “When all is said and done, all roads lead to the same end. So it’s not so much which road you take, as how you take it.” (Charles deLint) “It’s not the destination, it’s the journey” (Ralph Emerson) and most important is I plan to “look at life through the windshield, not the rearview mirror”(Byrd Baggett)
Most of all, I definitely look forward to turning up the volume of Willie’s Roadhouse (80’s Rock takes a distant second) as I take a Sunday drive via the long-cut down back country roads to Duffy’s, a special place in my heart. I might even get a little dust or mud on the tires…and I’m all right with that!
Embrace the Ride, “B”
My Dad in September 2020 just after we arrived home with the car.