The Family Car

My dad has an obsession with big American cars. I am not sure if he loves our SUV. But growing up, he only drove station wagons.

He looked like a microscopic object in the driver’s seat when compared to the immensity of the car. If you were looking from the outside, you would think the car was driving itself. Occasionally in the days when he wore glasses, you could make out an enormous pair of dense lenses and dark frames above the steering wheel. But only if you were using binoculars.

It was a spacious car without a doubt. My two siblings and I had our own special compartments in the back seat. I loved sitting against the window. I would occasionally open the window and stick my face out to have the wind blow through my hair (or maybe I was in touch with my dog personality back then!). If I decided to read, I felt as though I had room enough to lounge and get comfortable. And the wooden paneling was super cool along the side of the car! Nothing better than that for getting people's attention!

My parents would sit in the front seat at a distance that seemed to span actual states. I think my mom liked it that way. She had her own side to do her knitting. The angle provided her with a good view of my dad – in case he started to fall asleep at the wheel.

Some times I would reach over the front seat to set the radio to real music. And I would adjust the volume so that the music would play only in the back. This didn’t last very long because my dad would eventually change it back to his 1010 WINS. And he would gripe for a few minutes before changing --- how he needed to know what the traffic conditions were, how American music was going to rot my brain, etc.

We never took cross-country car trips. We mostly went to the beach in the summer or to visit family at other times during the year. I remember thinking that we had to fill the tank almost every time we turned a corner, but I did like those cars. For all their cigarette drenched foam seats or the windows that eventually never rose to the top of the frame, it was our second home on wheels. It certainly seemed big enough to be a real home at times.