My Armadilla

This is my car.

A 1995 Saturn. Gold. Spoiler. Sunroof and CD player.

I have had this beauty since I was 20 years old (so for 6 years this August) and it has served me well. It has been on trips from Canada to the United States (as far as St. George, Utah) and back many times.  It has survived cold winters and floods and has kept me warm and cool when it has been required.  My little armadilla (knicknamed that by some friends years ago because they felt it resembled an armadillo) has been a huge part of my life so far!  Does it sound weird that a car could actually carry with it some emotional substance?  My armadilla has been with me through some of the most challenging and exciting years of my life.  She even has a few ice cream stains to prove it.  One reason she is so important to me is because I bought her with my blood, sweat and tears while I was going to college and working part-time.  I hate being in debt so much that I would take on extra shifts at work just so I could earn a few extra hundred bucks.  Then, when my pay check would arrive, I would pay my tithing and then put 80% of my paycheck towards paying her off.  Within one year of my purchase, I had paid for her myself and learned the satisfaction that comes through discipline and hard work.

Lately, other than sounding like a solar powered toy, she has been making some awful sounds and will stall when I stop unless it is in neutral or parking...so I took her into the shop to get checked out.

She is dying.

Apparently only 2/3 of her engine is working.  So with the little time I have left with her, I hope that as I drive her to campus everyday, change her oil, and fill her with gas, she will continue to love me the way I have loved her.  Thank you armadilla for the past 6 years.  I hope our last year together will be as memorable as the rest.