Dedicated to Herb
Submitted by C
After 28 years of marriage and four kids, we stepped off the plane, feeling the warmth of Hawaii for the first time. Thoughts of home, the kids and the snow of Minnesota faded as we breathed in the salty, warm air on the island of Maui. I couldn’t believe we were really there.
Herb stepped out of the car rental building smiling, I had stayed with the luggage, not wanting to leave the tropical feeling outside. We grabbed up the luggage, and I followed as Herb led the way to our rental car spot. He stopped in front of a red Mustang convertible, and began loading the luggage. I had never ridden in a convertible and anxiously hopped in. Herb put the top down, and off we went, with an open view of the island around us.
The next ten days were spent relaxed and unhurried. We had coffee in the morning on the lanai, watching whales play off the island. We walked the beach and swam. We explored the island in the convertible, never putting the top up, even when it sprinkled rain. We walked among the other travelers shopping in the ocean side stores, and had dinner by moonlight.
Never have we had such a relaxed and calming vacation, especially since our youngest son, now 16, was born. Our son has multiple complex health conditions, he is medically fragile and technology dependent. He has required continuous care most of his life, and our lives have been happily devoted to him. Between his needs, the time also spent raising his three older brothers and work, there has not been much time in our lives to devote to our relationship. The opportunity to go to Hawaii, actually came as a result of my work, and I attended a conference part of the time we were there. Never-the-less, our trip to Hawaii was a dream come true, and an opportunity to enjoy each other in a way that we had never done before.
Over the past year, since our trip we have talked about Hawaii often. I made a screen saver for our computer from pictures of our trip, and sometimes I look at those pictures and day-dream about our time there, trying to remember the warmth of the sand and the smell of the air.
This fall in the wake of the events of September 11, Ford motor company offered wonderful incentives for new car sales with 0% financing. We discussed getting a new car and began casually looking around. On a lunch break from work one day I stopped into the Ford dealer, and spotted a red Mustang convertible, I went over to take a look and fell in love, but I didn’t dare even drive it. How could I even consider something so in-practical? That would be foolish, especially in Minnesota. I needed to look at a four wheel drive, family car. At home that night I told Herb about the Mustang, he urged me to drive it, saying why shouldn’t we consider it? The next day, I drove the car, and fell further in love with it, all the while coming up with reason after reason that we shouldn’t buy it. I called Herb asking him if he would come to look at the car, he did, and he too fell in love with it. We told the dealer we would take the car then and there. Never in our married years have we acted so impulsively.
Herb and I now get in our convertible together and imagine being back in Hawaii. We had a mild fall and we were able to have the top down a few days before the snow came. We are looking forward to summer, when again we can feel the warmth of the sun as we drive along in our red Mustang convertible secretly pretending we are in Hawaii again.