Wednesday, June 17

So yesterday I turned in my '06 Corolla S for the new '10 version. Selfish, I know. In actuality, when looking at the numbers it was a pretty practical move, despite the small selfishness involved in wanting the new technology. Remember, I drive about 65 miles a day; I need something to help keep me entertained!

The oddest thing occurred though, and I just had to post it here for the record.

When I got my '06 car, my Grandpa G. had been diagnosed with leukemia and given 1-2 weeks to live. He lived almost three months, but I've covered that whole story in my previous post. Anyway, when I got my '06 car and was bringing it home there was a Nickelback song that was big on the airwaves called "Photograph." Something about that song really hit me at that time, especially a few lines in particular that were in the song that were going through my mind at the time. Like "I miss that town, I miss their faces, you can't erase, you can't replace it. I miss it now, I can't believe it, so hard to stay, so hard to leave it." The line "Every memory of looking out the back door" and picturing my grandpa at the back door of the house waiting to give us all huge hugs and kisses the moment we entered. "Every memory of walking out the front door", and remembering how hard and sad it was to leave him and my grandma, since I spent most of my life living several hours (minimum) away from them. The hardest was walking out the door on Christmas Eve 2005 when I knew I would never see him again alive.

So in 2005 and into 2006, every time that song came on I would tear up and sometimes find myself outright crying. I'm not a person who cries a lot, but just hearing a few sounds of that song would do it. To this day I occasionally hear it; sometimes I listen and think back, and other times I change the channel and avoid thinking about that horrible time.

On my trip into work on Wednesday, June 17, I found the song on my iPod and played it as part tribute, part closure to a chapter. No tears, just thankfulness for the memories and time I had with those I've loved and lost. When Brad and I got to the dealership and I was getting out of my '06, I told him how I remembered how Grandpa was all excited about the new car, how he had asked me to describe it, when I was getting it. We checked to make sure everything was out and went inside the dealership.

When I got into my new car, Brad and I were waiting for the temp tag paperwork to be completed so we started fidgeting with the car. While he was looking under the hood, I turned on the car radio. It was set to an AM station, so I hit the FM button and it took me to a local station. And right there, at that moment, was that Nickelback song. Is it fate? Maybe. There are thousands of songs and lots of radio stations, so the fact that song would be on around 7:15pm that night on that particular channel is unusual. But I must say, at that moment it was almost like a sign from my Grandpa, letting me know that he'd still be with me, new car and all.

A horrifically corny post, but the whole thing was just so odd that I had to acknowledge it. Bye-bye '06 car, welcome new one. May I have many thousands of enjoyable miles driving it.