Farewell and thank you

For over ten years, during which time I became rather fond of her, she served me well.  What ever I asked of her she responded to willingly and I know that some of my more extreme demands, pressed in foul weather, on rock strewn meadows, were far less than reasonable. Ever ready for action, she kept strong and healthy.  Recently though she has been showing some signs of her age and the consequences of my unreasonable treatment of her; leaks becoming evident where there once were none, discoloured blotches on exposed surfaces here and there, minor failures.  The time, sadly, had come to look for a replacement for her, something younger, fitter, more sprightly.

At the car dealer’s showroom in Kalamata I found something to suit me; ten years younger, smart, little used, perhaps just a little flashy. The dealer eyed my trusty steed suspiciously.  “There are holes in the floor” he said.  “Of course”, I replied, “The rain that pours in through the holes on the roof has to get out somewhere”.  He offered me eight-hundred euros for her which I accepted with alacrity; before he had a chance to change his mind.  I said a sad and silent goodbye to her as her drove her down into the service bays under the showroom.  But, life must go on!