She was from the next school over and she was really, really cute. Her name was Christine and she worked at Frizall Freeze that summer of 1973. Frizall Freeze was one of those little ice cream stands that sat out in the country, usually at a cross roads. On one corner would be a gas station, and on the other would be a little ice cream place. There used to be a lot more of them than there are now. Frizall Freeze was my favorite, mostly because Christine worked there.

          She always seemed happy to see me. Of course, she would have been taught to look happy if Dracula walked up to her window. I was certainly happy to see her. Being a smooth seventeen year old guy, I had devised a plan to get her to go out with me. I would go there a few times and chat with her, then I would take my dog to show her I was sensitive and loving. (Girls really like dogs.) That was it. That was my plan. I thought it was brilliant.

          So, I loaded Rocky in the car one summer evening and headed out. (Rocky was not named Rocky because of Rocky Balboa of the “Rocky” movie fame. He was named for Rocky Colovito, right fielder for the Indians. Its not like I am weird or anything. Besides, Rocky the movie didn’t come out for three more years.) He was excited. I told him we were going for ice cream, but he just knew we were in the car going someplace. We got to Frizall’s and I let him out. Now he understood the ice cream. He had been there before. “OH! HE IS SO CUTE!” All the girls came out to pet him. Yep, the plan was solid. He even got a free ice cream. What is more attractive than a guy and his dog?

          I still had about half my cone and the girls needed to get back to work, so I got Rocky back in the car and then I got in and cranked it up. I backed up, then turned to pull out and at that point Rocky leaped across the seat and grabbed my cone. Startled, I jerked the wheel and ran into the telephone pole that was, for some reason, in the middle of the parking lot. I had no real speed going, so the only damage was the sign they had hanging on the pole advertising their hotdogs or something. The sign cost me $50 and there was no damage to the pole or my car because back in the day they put a serious bumper on a car. The budding romance with Christine was over, though. My pride was badly damaged.

          From 1973 to 2019 has been forty six years. A pretty long time. Since that time, I have driven a lot, a lot more than most people. I have had a few accidents, but none were actually my fault. I have totaled two cars, but on one the other driver went left of center and hit me and on the other, two hears ago, the doctor had cleared me to drive after my heart surgery but was still playing with my meds. I passed out at the wheel and rolled my car. The police didn’t cite me and my insurance didn’t increase. So, forty six years. Pretty cool.

          Until two weeks ago.

          Wal-Mart. Huntington, Indiana. I had just entered the parking lot and was driving on the outer perimeter looking for the lane I wanted. I was looking for traffic and looking for my chosen lane and all of a sudden there was a bump and the car stopped. I had run into a stop sign. At the Wal-Mart in Wabash they don’t have stop signs at the end of the lanes. Actually, there aren’t many in Huntington. But I found one. The stop sign had yellow concrete around the post about four feet high. Kind of hard to miss, actually, but I never saw it. I backed up and parked in a handy parking place. I got out to check damage. The pole was fine. There was paint on it, but nothing my color. I checked my car. The hood had a crinkle, the grill plastic was broke, the fascia (that is the plastic part that covers the flimsy bumper) was bent a little. The car was perfectly drivable except the radiator was leaking. The hood lock was stuck, so I couldn’t see the damage and therefore didn’t know if the radiator was damaged or if it had just popped a hose. I knew I couldn’t drive it like that so I called my insurance. I figured a day or two in the body shop, straighten out a few things and I would be on my way. I had barely been moving, certainly not as fast as that day back in 1973. The air bags didn’t even deploy. No big deal.

          $8200 and I might not get the car back till next month.

          I was stunned. How? I asked the body man. How could that be $8200? He went into this long explanation about how all cars and trucks are built today. In a head on, they are made to crumble. This cushions the blow. The frame has no real strength until it gets back to the cabin area. It used to be a motor could get shoved into the cabin of the vehicle. Not anymore. Now the design pushes the motor down and the vehicle accepts the impact. The car I rolled over because of the mix up on meds was a Honda Fit. The cage that surrounds the cabin area in that car is made of super hardened alloys just for such an event. I didn’t have a scratch. When I replaced that car, I got another Fit. The first one had saved my life by not collapsing like almost any other car would do. But the front end of the Fit is made to fold up, just like all trucks and cars today. Now, my car is in the shop and it is going to cost $8200.

          The insurance adjuster told me not to sweat it. “Mr. Wade, you have all kinds of insurance! Your good!” And it is true. Insurance costs me more than other people. I drive my car for work. I could get it cheaper if I didn’t disclose that, but I could also get in trouble if I had an accident on church business. And, because it is a work vehicle, I have to have some serious insurance. But I was barely moving!

          Still, I understand. Back when Rocky decided he wanted my cone the idea was that a really good bumper and a really good frame were going to protect people. In time, they discovered that all those things protected was the vehicle itself. People were thrown forward into the steering wheel or dash or windshield. Everything was hard and unmoving. There was no cushion. People died in cars that could be driven away from the accident. Vehicles were reengineered and a lot of lives have been saved. I understand.

          And it does have a Spiritual application. For someone who has put their faith in Christ and has accepted Him as Savior, it is understood that life will still be rough. In fact, there is nothing in the Bible, unless you are taking verses out of context, that tells you that if you accept Christ as Savior you will have a great life. Many Christian leaders will say that any hard times you face come because you don’t have enough faith. Keep in mind, though, that these people are also hitting you up for money to buy new jets. No, the Bible talks of struggle and hardship, but it also tells us that the Lord will always be with us. Jesus promised a Comforter. Why, if everything was going to be all happy and candy, would we need a Comforter? The Lord is with the true believer, absorbing the impact of life’s ‘fender benders.’ The Lord is with the true believer, protecting and covering that believer. Life’s misadventures can be really hard, but the Lord is taking more of the impact than we know.

          Rocky lived with my Mom for a long time after that, eventually dying at 17 years. Twice a week she gave him ice cream and he loved her for it. I sold that old car for $50 to a junk hard. That little accident actually made me a better driver. And Christine, I assume, eventually married, had kids and maybe even grandkids. She probably still tells the tale about the kid who tried to act cool and then hit their sign. All of these things make up our lives. It is just so much better with Christ.