More than just a ride

                                                                      More than just a ride!

By Andrew

I can categorically state that I am privileged to have had a ride in a sleek top of the range convertible Chrysler courtesy of a friend who just arrived a couple of days ago from the gulf. Arab money must have done him justice by the way his current public opinion (read looks) was being portrayed. He had developed a “one pack”- a protruding tummy, his cheeks had grown favourably and his handshake grown more firm, all these synonymous to his current status symbol.

Back to the sleek, top of the range enviable car. First I realized that inside the car was a world so different from the world I am used to, quality adjustable leather seats, fully functional air conditioning system, so many buttons that my driving illiteracy could not comprehend and of course fine tuned jazz music. Did I mention the mini screen at the front? What of the fact that the top part (may I call it the car roof please?) of the car could cover and uncover at the touch of a button? This was certainly a dream experience many will have to read strictly under the wire!

During the drive I got to asking myself so many questions. How can life be so full of different standards yet it still sails on unperturbed? My typical life is made of public transport which is obviously full of drama, discomfort and uncertainty. Uncertainty in the sense that you may never know just when the next cop would pounce on the vehicle you are in and spell out a full-page of ‘crimes” committed by the vehicle ranging from poor quality seat belts, expired insurance certificates to non functional lights?

The ride also gave me an opportunity to sample some of the finest music ever done as far as jazz and golden oldies are concerned not to mention the unrivalled great tastes of the South African jazz maestro Hugh Masekela and Abba.

One thing however that gets me off my feet is the fact that whether it was a lift or my car for instance that did not matter, my status blossomed a great deal. You ca n imagine how much of a village boy I behaved like resting my hand on the car door with an open window just to ensure nobody dared miss a clean view of me.

Another funny thing, if I may say, my English while in the sleek car was top of the range up to the moment when I stepped out and true to my fears, I reverted back to my poor quality linguistics that I am so much laboring to put across to you just so that in humility you may understand my point.

All in all I got so many vital life lessons from the drive:

That on a junction you have to slow down-my friend explained this to me that in his life he was always cautious and slowed down so as not to hurry up his way to success and end up with wrong choices that may in the long run be fatal.

On a highway you have to carefully speed to your destination-he told me that this is a vital life skill since once he identified his dream goal in life he mustered so much energy and ran as fast as possible to claim it just before anybody else destroyed his dream!

There are speed bumps on which we slowed down before carefully moving on- my friend told me that in his life there were speed bumps called discouragements but he carefully found his way around them to his dream.

About my friend’s up market taste of music (not to mention that before his new status he was a man who listened to anything as long as it was instruments plus voice), he explained to me that just like his quality standard of music, he also had set goals and standards that he always worked hard to achieve. He further advised me that if I did not stand for something then I would definitely fall for anything!

Most definitely that was more than just a ride, don’t you agree?