This week has been a very emotional week. We said good-bye to a dear friend, our 2004 Subaru Impreza. I honestly thought we would keep this car forever. It had become a trusted member of the family. We had the Subaru, "Subie" as we lovingly named it, for over 11 years. It was the first car our oldest son drove when he got his license in Virginia. We had decided it would become the "kid" car, seeing each one of our four kiddos through their early driving years. Our youngest graduated high school in June, and will be going off to college next month, and it really made no sense to keep four cars around as my husband and I become empty-nesters.
I knew the time was coming, but I kept creating excuses of why we needed to keep the car. I even went so far as taking it over as my own this last year, offering my Honda to our youngest just so I could drive the fun and sporty Subie. As summer continued on though, I had to finally agree with my husband that we needed to let it go. He knew he would meet great resistance from me as I had become attached to every single vehicle we have ever owned. He just wasn't quite prepared for how attached I had become to this rough and tough little machine. Subie was more than a car, it was a scrapbook of memories, a treasure box of experiences, and a trusted loyal friend that protected our children when we couldn't be there to protect them. The fact that this was the last car we purchased while all four of our children were still at home, only added to the fact that it was going to be hard for me to let go.
Wednesday morning I shocked my husband. I went to give Subie one last bath and cleaned out all the contents and told my husband that I was taking it for one last drive. I loved driving it so much. It had a manual transmission and was the most fun vehicle I had ever driven. It handled like a charm. I drove it to the local Carmax, title in hand, and asked what it may be worth. It had been in one accident early on, protecting our two oldest sons from a very serious collision, so I knew there was a bit of frame damage and that would affect the appraisal. I was surprised by the amount we were offered and texted my husband and our oldest son (Subie was his first love) to see if they thought it was a fair price. After the two literally shouted "yes" via text, I told Carmax they had a deal.
So I drove Subie one last time off the lot and into the service area of the dealership. I sat and watched as the attendant drove it back to the garage and as I waited for my husband to come pick me up. While I was waiting, I was texting our oldest son and we were reliving some Subie moments one last time. By the time my husband arrived, I was almost cried out. Yes, I was actually crying in the dealership and was given my very own tissue box. When he arrived, I got into my trusty old Honda and drove away.
I walked into the garage this morning and saw my husband's car parked there and wondered what Subie may be doing this morning. We had given Subie the garage because of it's age and need to be protected from the sun because his air conditioner had given out. Hopefully some young college student will purchase our trusty old friend and find that he will be well cared for by the best car we have ever owned. I'll keep that hope in my mind while I pretend not be sad that a trusty old friend, a caretaker of my family, and a very long chapter in our lives, has now left us.
Thank you, Subie ~ Alison
