My old car

I saw my old car the other day...

I pulled into the driveway to serve a trespass summons and there it was. The old grey mustang. It was battered, badly. I started to get out of my car when this rather large pit bull began barking wildly and running towards me. I could see that it was loosely tied to a tree and I was pretty sure it couldn't reach me. I walked past the slobbering dog to the steps of the trailer and knocked on the door.

As I waited I kept half an eye on the dog until I heard the thud thud thud of someone coming to the door. The door opened and this really overweight girl came to the door wearing a way too small pink bikini. My eyes instinctually darted away as I asked "Is your mother here?"

the girl just stared at me for what seemed like forever before looking back into the trailer and yelling "MOMMAAA, PO-LEEECE IS HERE!" The girl then disappeared into the trailer.

Finally momma comes to the door. Momma looks like an even fatter version of the girl. Momma is wearing a moo moo and missing several teeth. "Is Mr. such and such here?" I ask the woman, as I step into the trailer.

The trailer is grimy and the floor is littered with God knows what. There is some guy who looks to be in his fifties sleeping on the couch in a bundle of blankets. He looks as if he is in the process of dying.

"No sir, he lived at lot 2."

I look around and notice this is the only trailer on the property.
All I can think to say is "ummmm." as I'm still trying to get the frightening image of her daughter out of my head. Finally the woman points to a camper in the back yard. "He done been gone bout a week." She says.

"I told detective such and such that she better hurry or he'd be gone"
The detective she referred to is our sex crimes investigator and curiosity finally got the better of me.

"What was going on that you contacted her?" I ask.
The woman shoos her children away and leans in as if to tell me a secret.
"He done molested both my youngins." She says.

I try to change the subject by asking her about the car. "We bought that off'n a guy fer a thousand dollars." She says, as though it was the bargain of the century.

"Really?" I ask. "That used to be my car." I tell her.

"Yeah, she was a pretty good ole car bafore we wrecked her." The woman says while scratching in a place better not mentioned.

About this time her son, who looks to be about 7 years old, walks over to me and stands toe to toe with me. I'm not kidding this kids toes were literally touching the end of my shoes. He's staring up at me with this blank look on his face.

"How are you buddy?" I ask him. He just keeps staring, I don't think he was able to talk. I begin to feel awkward when suddenly the boy wraps both arms around my legs as tightly as he could and just buries his face into my leg. He continues to hug me for several seconds and finally lets go. Still standing toe to toe with me he looks up with this expression in his eyes, as if he is begging me to pleeeeaaaaaaase take him with me. His mother calls him back to the porch telling him that "he's lucky I didn't take him to jail fer assaultin' a officer."

The boy is still looking at me as I say "Nah, hugs aren't considered an assault. Everyone loves hugs." I wave to the woman and wish her good luck, and that I hope things work out for her.

I walk past my old car, and peek inside. The interior has been ruined and there is about a four foot deep stack of beer cans and other trash littering the floorboards and seats. The dash has been split open. And I have this strange feeling of sadness as I get back into my cruiser and pull off.

There are a lot of old memories attached to that car. My ex-wife and I picked it out about a year after we had gotten married. We drove it more than once from North Carolina to Indiana. When I was sick it took me to the hospital in Winston Salem without fail.

I picked my wife and son up from the hospital after his birth in that car. I can see them both in the car laughing and having a good time, him in the back being upset because he said he thought his "feet smelled like stinky vinegar pickles." Us sitting in the front seats laughing at him as he said that.

And it makes me sad, it was a time when things seemed new and exciting, the future was wide open with possibilities, and My son, ex-wife and I were all happy together.