It’s Better To Give…

…Than To Receive. Well that’s what we’re told when we’re kids. We don’t believe it, of course. But later, with the wisdom of years, we begin to see with different eyes. And when something personally cataclysmic happens in our lives – like developing terminal cancer – we become tender hearted and the truth blossoms. So when my son’s car failed it’s annual safety and emissions test spectacularly – even going so far as to disgorge it’s brake fluid all over the parking place as the tester drew to a halt…

…I immediately lent him my all-time favourite car: my beloved 1998 Toyota Corolla. However, as winter wore on, I became increasingly concerned about the underbody rust that the road gritter’s salt would promote. I didn’t say anything: what would be the point? He needed a car, and there it was – doing naff-all behind the carport gates. But it gnawed. Then, recently he began to complain that the Corolla was astonishingly slow. Pitifully slow in fact. Okay it’s an automatic with  a wheezy 1.33 litre engine; and his journey to work involves some serious hills: but could it be THAT slow? A ride in the passenger seat for a hospital appointment proved the worst to me. Since he was driving the car full-time, my son decided that he would pay for a full service on the car, which he duly did. However, when he saw the bill for all the work that had followed, he almost regretted it. So I decided to go halves with him: it was my car after all. I also decided that I would buy him a car. I had already spotted a car at a local used car lot that, I thought, fulfilled his criteria. He wanted “something different”, but not really fast. Something that would get up the hills with ease and wouldn’t struggle in motorway traffic. So I took him there. He spotted it immediately, and despite visiting several more sales outlets, I knew it was love at first sight. So here is a picture of the fabulous old dog he has been driving, parked beside his ‘new’ automobile…

And I have to say, it certainly is different. It has one large door on the driver’s side: on the passenger side hang two smaller doors. And the dashboard looks like the cockpit of some nineteen fifties science fiction comic space rocket.

I have to say, I really like it. But what I REALLY like is the pleasure I felt when paying for it. He now has a car that he likes more than he thought he could like a car – that he didn’t need to go into debt to own. Right now I imagine he can’t quite get his head around the concept of ‘it’s better to give than to receive’; but I know the truth.

P.S For anyone who doesn’t recognise the car; it’s a Hyundai Veloster. Rather groovy methinks. Not a common car on British roads either.