Why Am I Me?

[spacer height=”05px”]

Driving!

[spacer height=”04px”]

Most of us have a choice when it comes to what kind of vehicle to drive. Did you buy new or used? What color? What features?
Sometimes we don’t have a choice, sometimes we do. But whatever we drive, it makes you, you!

[spacer height=”05px”]
Looking back and remembering when you first started to drive you can probably remember the instructor (usually Mom or Dad) cringing as you pulled out of the driveway. Of course, they just wanted to keep you safe, and hopefully get back in the driveway later with no major damage. For most of us, we survived!

[spacer height=”05px”]

Being exposed to farm tractors and trucks at an early age, I learned to drive pretty quickly, out of necessity. If you can drive the tractor at age 6-7, it frees up the adults to do other work you can’t do. But being a teenage boy, we all dreamed of driving the family car on ……the paved road.

[spacer height=”05px”]

My brothers and I could all drive trucks and tractors, but we never really got to drive on the road until age 15 when we could get a learner’s permit. Man oh man; we looked forward to that day. My Mom was our first teacher and had her own ideas about how to go about the task. We paid attention and did it her way until we could drive on our own….solo!

[spacer height=”05px”]
Since that day I would have a hard time remembering all the cars, trucks, vans, and motorcycles I’ve had, but I can tell you I remember some very different driving experiences over the years. Driving in foreign countries is always challenging especially if they drive on the wrong side of the road. Remembering which side of the road you’re supposed to stay on was ok, but making turns correctly was my challenge.

[spacer height=”05px”]
A recent fun drive was in Germany where we drove in a Trabi-Safari around the city. We were driving these post-World War II cars that were manufactured during the cold war era before the Berlin Wall came down. These Trabi cars are made of compressed cardboard, had two-stroke engines, windshield wipers, a very simple transmission, and headlights and blinkers. No frills here folks…just a real basic car. After the unification of Germany, nobody wanted these cars anymore, now that they had access to much better autos from the west. A local entrepreneur kept 50-100 and painted them all wild color schemes. Now tourists rent them to drive all over Berlin sightseeing in small caravans of 10-12 cars. We were as much
of an attraction as the sights we were visiting, as many tourists took photos of the old, wildly-colored cars. My wife said between the funky car and the sights we visited, she thought it was our most fun day while in Berlin!

[spacer height=”05px”]

So whether it’s a sports car, truck, family van or whatever, what you drive is part of what makes you, you! We all have that time when we are replacing or planning a major decision for something of value, such as a vehicle, major appliance, a new career, selecting what to major in at school or university, or moving to a new home. We seek out experts and perform research in order become educated about our choices before we make that decision. That’s just plain smart! Do you need to look for new medical plans, retirement financial opportunities, wills or trust, life insurance, long-term care options?

[spacer height=”05px”]
Don’t make the decision on your own! Give your local experts a call, were here to help!