I thought I was going to have an anxiety attack today. I was thinking about that tomorrow and also giving my speech tomorrow. At least now I can tackle just one thing. My voice has been cracking for a few days now, and I know its because of the stress. My dad said I can take 1/2 of one of his Xanax in the morning and that should help. I have never taken one before, so we shall see. Meds usually don't effect me a whole lot, so I don't think it will be a problem. I rewrote my speech a bit, and here is the final version (its supposed to be manuscript form, so here it is in its entirety)
I come here today to pay tribute to something very near and dear to my heart. Something that has met the challenges that life has thrown his way. I want to express my gratitude and praise for my car. (insert picture #1) This is how Car might have looked in his heyday.
Car was made in the year 1989, and had high ideals of what he wanted to do in his lifetime. His hope and dream was to surpass the lifetime of most cars his age.
He has been there in good times, going to parties, bringing home a new baby from the hospital, and taking his people to weekend getaways. He has been there in bad times. going to funerals, transporting his people to the doctor when they were ill, or to visit a sick friend in the hospital.
He has even withstood all the mundane tasks required of him. Trips to the grocery store, the bank, school, and the monotonous daily trips to work. He has always been dependable and did what was required of him.
Life hasn’t always been easy for car. He once came in contact with a deer and was taken to the car spa. He had parts replaced, parts beat out with a big hammer, and work done under the damaged hood as well. He never looked quite the same. He was there for quite awhile, and there didn’t seem to be any rush. It was all so very strange to him since so much had been required of him before. He didn’t know how they were dealing with his absence. When he got home he found out he had been replaced. Something newer and flashier now had his spot by the door. A sign went up on his windshield, and he sat patiently waiting to see what would happen next. He had a prestigious spot in the front yard, but day after day he sat. Occasionally his person would come out, put the key in him, and give him a good start. A few times he would get to go out on the open road, feeling the wind rushing past his bruised and battered body. He loved the feel of the wind, and the rocks under his tires. This was what he was meant for, this was his dream. They would make their way back to the yard, back to sit and wait. After a few trips like this, he got moved to the back of the driveway. He could no longer watch all the other cars going down the road. He was left sitting despondent on the hill.
Oh sure, he still had some use. He was a shelf when someone was pruning the
tree he was sitting next to. He was a plaything, when the little girl of the house had a slumber party and they all piled in him and pretended they were teenagers cruising Lincoln Avenue in Charleston on a Friday or Saturday night. He was even a home to a wild creature who built a nest under the hood. He sat through the change of seasons, each one with the hope that his dreams would be realized. The test starts were fewer and farther between, the drives became almost nonexistent. He felt alone, and forgotten.
One day he was visited by his person, and a nice lady and her young boy. They looked under his hood, took him on another drive down the road. The lady was gentle with him, and this held some promise. A few days later, the nice lady showed up, removed the sign, and started him up. They went sailing down the road, and to this day barely has any time off. What joy, what pleasure Car has in being useful again.
No one knows how many people have looked upon Car as an object, a possession, but it was all fine with Car. He was here to do his job. Car has performed and done what has been expected of him. He has surpassed this goal, and even kept going when it was said he didn’t have it in him any more. People have thought that Car needed to be put to pasture, but he isn’t done yet.
Although outside appearances can be deceiving, (insert picture #2) I think that Car shows us that no matter our age or what life has thrown us along the way, that it’s the inside, it’s the heart that counts. We can all be flawed, weathered, aged, but its what pulses through us that makes us what we are. For this I would like to thank Car, for being what he is, dependable, sturdy, and strong, especially in the face of adversity.
God Bless, and keep praying about the attorney thing. I was a wreck today. Thanks.
(let me know what you think about the speech. Just BE NICE!) :)
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