Let's go for a ride.

Let's go for a ride
A short story By Emelio O.
(No Louis Armstrong has nothing to do with this story, I just didn't know what else to put)

I remember back when I was a 10 year old boy. With a small body frame and thick glasses and braces. I also remember that for whatever reason I was deathly afraid of cars. I never came close to them let alone ride in one. One day my dad got a nice car, the sporty kind where the top goes down. My dad at the time was an aging 40 something with a receding hairline, and marks on his face that came from his faded smile. One day he said let's go for a ride, this scared me beyond believe I begged and begged to not get in the car, but my dad was persistent and eventually got me in the car. Amidst my cry's I heard him say a faint "Come on buddy, let's go for a ride. I'll be fun". We drove and drove until eventually I faintly could see through my tears that we were approaching the coast. My dad noticed my short break in crying, and despite my objections he put the top down. Before I could start crying again I looked out the window and saw the most beautiful sunset of my life. It was as if the angles them selfs decided to make a painting in the sky with the most beautiful and vivid of reds, oranges, and yellows imaginable. At that moment I felt the wind, the cool wind against my face was breathtaking. The speed we were going was novel to me now, but to my 10 year old self it was the most exhilarating and beautiful experience imaginable. My dad looked at me and said "you see what happens when you take a chance and try something new?". I nodded slightly and enjoyed the rest of the drive.

After that I was no longer afraid of cars. about 5 years later when I got my license he gave me that car. As he gave me the keys he said "I'll miss this car, let's go for one last ride". We went on the same route as when I was a child. My dad looked out the window and said "funny thing that time is, isn't it?" I asked what he meant by that and he said "you turn your back on it for awhile and before you know it the present you once knew and loved is gone. Time sends as all to the same end, but that's not what matters right? It's the route we take. Do me a favor and take the long way when you can, or you'll regret it later."

I still remember those words as I glance at your casket, it was a open casket funeral. Sadness could not do my emotions justice, I just sat there staring blankly at your withered face worn down by the sands of time. Reminiscing about summer days gone by, when we played in the fleeting light of the blazing sun without a care in the world with my youthful innocence. I look to the sky and suddenly remember that moment, the moment of youthful bliss that was my first drive. I chuckle solemnly and pull out the key he gave me and put it in his pocket. "I'll miss you already dad, I'll make you proud no matter what". I walk to the coast and sit for awhile, looking at the same glorious sunset I saw as a child. I think to myself: I'll miss this past, but no need to dwell on it. Time won't wait for me, so may as well take in as much as I can before time takes this moment away too.

Goodbye dad I won't forget you,
Ever