In Memoriam

Tuesday morning Jack drove to the gym as he normally does. After he came home he told me the car was making a really bad noise and we needed to have it towed to the shop. That afternoon, the shop called to say there was nothing wrong with the engine, and gave us a quote on the repairs. The next morning Jack called to see when the car would be finished, and was told that the engine was shot and needed to be replaced. A new engine (without labor) costs about what the car is worth, so we have said goodbye to our Saturn.

This is like the end of an era for our family. Jack bought the Saturn new the summer of 1999, just a few months before we got married. We drove home from the temple in it after we were married. We used it to drive out to our first job out of college in Kansas City. I drove it back and forth to Manhattan, KS while I finished my last semester of college at KState. We brought Rebecca home from the hospital in it. We brought Miriam home from the hospital in it. We loaded it up with our clothes and other essentials when we moved back to Colorado.

The Saturn has lasted while many 'garage companions' have come and gone. We had a motorcycle that first summer we were married that Jack used to commute to work. We got a little car in exchange for our living room set before we moved to Kansas (we needed two cars since I was going to be gone half the week). We got a Ford Ranger the day before someone broke into that little car and jammed a piece of metal in the ignition. We sold the Ranger when we had Miriam and realized the Saturn was a bit cramped with two car seats. Then we became the owners of our first minivan, a Plymouth Voyager. We got rid of the Plymouth before it could die on us on some country road just 3 years ago. Now we have the Dodge Grand Caravan.

The Saturn has been a good car for us and helped us create lots of good memories. But now I think--isn't it interesting that we have a 3 car garage and only one vehicle?