Last Will and Testament

Last Will and Testament

...and to the kiddos I award
my old jalopy, Earth.

Although I've driven her hard,
she's still got some miles left under the hood.
Reverse is shot so there’s no going backward
and the emergency brake’s been overused to death
but she’ll get you where you want to go with
a few repairs and workarounds and a kind word.

Remind the kiddos the ol’ girl tends to overheat.
She also floods easily, and her steering rods must be
bent because she’ll veer out of control if you're not
vigilant at the wheel. The gizmos and features
that made her special are mostly worn out.
She’s down to the basics—yet she still rolls along.

Granted, I didn’t maintain her the way
I probably should’ve, though that saved me
lots of money and a world of bother. The kiddos
get her “as is”, just as I got her from my old man.
If they have the will and the means, maybe
they can spruce her up a bit.

The ol’ girl was once a pretty sweet ride.
If the kiddos wreck her now, after all this time,
it’d be a damn shame. They don’t make ‘em
like that anymore. Please mention there’s only
one key--they’ll have to share. And caution them
to take the potholes easy--there’s no spare in the trunk.

PS: Never mind the tailpipe smoke. It blows away.
Good luck, dear kiddos, and happy driving.

Author: Darrell Petska
Website  |  On OMPJ

Photo: Melinda Gimpel on Unsplash