Tradition Happens

The lovely thing about "tradition" is the fact that a great tradition is typically not planned, it just seems to happen. Such is the case for then manner in which we transport our children to their first day of school each year.

When Isabella was entering first grade, the morning of her first day was glorious and we decided to take her to school in our beloved Fiat convertible. We wanted the journey to be special and different.

Our 1.1-mile trip was delightful and she was giddy about the fact that she was able (for the first time) to sit in the front seat (yes, we broke the law) as Bonnie wisely decided to sit in the back, which has no seat belts. We walked Isabella to class and, then, shed tears as we walked back to the car. I dropped Bonnie back at home and headed straight to work.

It was a great trip to her first post kindergarten school day but I thought little about it over the course of the year. And the year passed far too quickly. Soon, it was time for second grade and we took the obligatory picture of Isabella in her uniform on the first morning of grade two. Then, I ushered her to my sedan and she looked at me with her eyes as big as could be and said, "what about the convertible?" Plan B was called into place. I guessed that a tradition was underway.

This morning was "first school day trip" number eight. Each year the car runs a bit rougher but her smile and the tradition shine brighter with each successive grade..

As for THE FIAT: I do not get attached to material things but, if possible, this car will be with us until the end of our time. It was not expensive (quite the opposite) nor is it fancy, but it came into our lives shortly after we were married and it was a special time for us. We longed for an Italian car but had a limited budget so every Sunday morning I would purse over the classified ads with a microscope. One early winter morning in 1993, I saw THE post I had been looking for and I forced Bonnie into the family auto for a 90-minute drive south. And there IT was and it was entirely original (as it is today) including the paint. It is a 1981 Fiat Spider and we bought it from an elderly couple that had not used it in many years. We could not believe how little they were asking for it but they said they wanted it to be in "the right hands" and they deemed us to have such hands. Bonnie drove the car home and I drove the Fiat. It was ten degrees Fahrenheit (-12 Celsius) and fifteen minutes into the trip I realized the heater did not work but I am not sure I cared. It since then has been cared for like a baby.

My hope is to see Isabella and Gabriella at the helm of it someday but, for now, I am delighted to chauffer them around, creaky suspension and all.