Farewell to Cars
Earlier this week I sold my car. It was an old car that has served me well over the years, but has seen its better days. Its engine finally failed completely some time last winter, and since then it was only a question of when, and not if, I'll sell it to someone for parts.
This was my first, and so far only, car. When I bought it I anticipated spending a lot of time on the road and I wanted to buy a sturdy, safe vehicle. Seeing it gone after all these years is a bit sad, not unlike the time I sold my bike at the end of my college years. Aside from being my first car, it also had a lot of sentimental value for several reasons. I bought this car with the money that I inherited after my mother's death. In a way, this was her last gift to me. That money she obtained after selling out old house in Sarajevo. For all of the war we had no access to that house or any of the few positions that were left over there. Most of those possessions were pillaged by the Serbian forces shortly after we had been forced to leave, but the house they could not take with them. Thanks to the US military intervention we were able to reclaim the house and sell it. In a way, my car was thus an indirect yet very tangible reminder of the virtues of US military engagements around the world. Thanks to one such engagement millions of people in my neck of the woods alone were able to go to their homes and reclaim what was rightfully theirs. My car is gone now, but its symbolism remains with me. It is after all our memories that make us into who we are.