My car stalled at a light and although I got it to start up, it ended up breaking down just a mile or so further down the road. I was on my way to school, and I had no other way there, so my mom picked me up and let me keep the car. We were close to my grandma's house, so she picked my mom up and drove her home from there.
When class was over, I had to hurry and try to fix my car before I attended a meeting, because I had to go to work directly afterward. I went Autozone, a store that sells car parts, where I picked up the cables that I was told I needed a couple weeks before. I was told that it was an easy fix, so although I had never worked on a car before, I was willing to try it out.
When I arrived at my car, which had not been towed, I popped the hood and tried working on it on my own. I grabbed the cables from my mom's car and as I closed the door, I noticed that I had accidentally locked its keys inside of it. At this point, I had no other option than to get my car running so that I could make it to my meeting and to work.
I looked into the engine and realized that I had no idea how to get the cables out, or how to put the new ones in. I called my father, who lives in Florida, and he tried walking me threw the steps. He told me, "Remove the cables from where the spark plugs are." I immediately began to cry. My father had taught me a bit about cars when I was younger, and I realized that I no longer remembered a thing. The severity of the situation started getting to me and I felt desperate. A man saw me crying and came over with his three kids to help.
He began showing me where things were and how to remove and replace the cables. He found out that one wasn't connected properly and when he pushed it back in, my car started up without problem. Another man, who was a mechanic, took over in helping me replace the other cables to make sure that the ones I had were the new set.
After he finished plugging them in, I turned on my car and it stalled. I couldn't believe that we were back to square one. I felt drained of all energy and hopeless. The mechanic replaced the old cables and explained that they were very knew, so they weren't the problem. He said that he thought the problem was the spark plugs and that I'd need to go back to Autozone to exchange the cables for spark plugs.
In order to get to Autozone, I had to take my car that stalled every time I stopped at a light. I had to apply consistent pressure to the gas pedal to make sure that I didn't stall in the middle of the street between lights. After 7 miles of agonizing stalling, I arrived at my destination.
I waited in line and told the worker the spark plugs that I needed. As I was buying them, I asked, "So do I just pull them out with my fingers and pop the new ones in?" (This was the process for changing the cables.) He gave a chuckle and explained that I was wrong. I was embarrassed and stressing about getting my car fixed in time for my obligations. He set me up with the other parts that I needed and I went to tackle the project.
As I was removing the spark plugs, I ran into an issue where it wouldn't come out all of the way. I walked inside and asked if I needed another tool, and they said that I already had everything that I needed. I went back to my car, frustrated and started getting flustered and upset with the tools. The cashier came out for a smoke break and asked if he could help. He pulled all of the spark plugs out quickly and replaced the new ones. I turned on my car and it worked. I finally had something good happen this day!
As I drove to my meeting, I reflected upon the horrible day and realized that I disregarded the biggest parts. I have a mom who is willing to help me when I am stuck on the side of the road. I was lucky to have not have my car towed by the time I returned to it. I have a father who will listen to me freaking out about my car. I was fortunate enough to have a man willing to stop and help me. I was blessed to have a mechanic stop and tell me what the real problem was. I was also lucky enough to find a worker at Autozone who really cared about helping me, and who took his own break time to get me safely back on the road. I even learned how to change cables and spark plugs on cars!
Remember that even on the worst of days, there is someone out there having it worse. Look on the bright side and appreciate life's little moments that really count. Being thankful for these things is the key to happiness, and happiness even on the roughest days will ensure you happiness for life!
Your intro really grabbed my attention and urged me to keep reading! Not only was it totally relatable, but it also made me want to find out what you endured that day! I totally have those days. I'm glad that you can end up looking at it in a positive light!
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