The more I read about global warming, oil wars and extreme pricing at the pump, not to mention your daily dose of lung debilitating smog, I have to confess it wasn’t a quick decision for me to get my drivers license again. I had let it expire, soon after I got it in my teens, because I had nothing to drive and no way to afford even the thought of a car during my years at university. This never stopped me from dreaming about a car, however.

For years I had reoccurring dreams bordering on nightmares, where I would feel compelled to get in and drive a car that for no known reason was at my disposition, and I would drive for miles and miles, all the while aware that I was doing something against the law. I felt very torn – I had my freedom, but I was risking it by the very act that I was performing.

These dreams continued until circumstances presented an opportunity for me to go back to driving school nearly thirty years later and start all over again. My dreams made me think that I needed to put these nightmares to rest, so I completed the course, got my learner’s permit and hit the road as a bona fide driver. Although I managed to fail my first driving test, with the help of a good friend I mastered my weaknesses and earned my license on one of the most windy and rainy days on record. Try doing a reverse parallel park during a monsoon!

The first day I was able to rent a car and hit the road, sitting behind the wheel was like an out of body experience. I had waited so many years to be able to do this again – and off I drove into the sunset! I was ecstatic.

Soon after I decided to join a car co-op that I had seen advertised. I couldn’t afford my own car and I felt that this set up would offer me an opportunity to gauge whether or not I needed one. Besides, it was also an environmentally good alternative to more cars on the planet. In case you don’t know about car co-ops, they provide a fleet of cars, available at various parking lots around the city, and you reserve on-line or by phone by the hour. It’s a smart alternative.

So now, all of the sudden I was “with car” and my little universe expanded by leaps and bounds. I was so used to my longer distance friends being off limits unless they came to see me, or I would take very long and inconvenient public transportation that most often did not arrange itself around my schedule. I missed a lot of important events along the way, and one night, as I drove up to my close friend’s home in the Laurentian mountains just north of the city, I thought, boy, good things do come to those who are fearless about waiting! It was hard not to look back at all that I had missed, but come hell or high water, I wasn’t missing anything from now on, to put it mildly.

Several months later I heard about a fire on the south shore, just over the bridge from Montreal, where an entire building of apartments had been burned to the ground. It was a couple of weeks before Christmas and dozens of people were homeless. Feeling somewhat more empowered, I e-mailed my coworkers and asked if they would like to join me in contributing to the Red Cross fundraising for these victims. I collected cash, as well as a lot of household items I didn’t need anymore, and reserved a car. It was time to put these wheels to good use!

As I left to pick up the car, there was a sudden and unexpected downpour (certainly for December) which brought back memories of my exam and the monsoon. Since this was my specialty, I knew I would be well equipped for my mission. I was completely soaked from head to toe, even before I loaded up the car. Fortunately my neighbour was home and she was able to help me load up the heavier items.

Onto the highway, heading over the bridge, I was laughing at the howling winds and horizontal rain assaulting the car. “God”, I asked, quickly gazing up toward the invisible sky, “in case it’s not immediately evident, I’m going to need your help to locate this church in a neighbourhood I don’t know, in this downpour and now, in the dark. Please stand by!” Also, I had to get the car back within the hour. Fortunately, God is a master of both comedy and drama.

As I came to the many roads to choose from at the end of the bridge, I asked: “Ok, which way?” and something told me “left”. Seconds later at another fork in the highway I asked again: “Which way now?” and it was “left”. Finally, I had a feeling I needed to get off of the highway, so I asked “Which way?” and it was “right”. I had managed to get some very vague directions from the church, so I pulled into a fast food stop to confirm what I knew. Their assistance got me close, but to another church, so I continued in the same general direction until I stopped at a garage station. The kind lady attendant got out a map and pointed out that I was only a couple of minutes from my destination. Almost there!

As I pulled up into the church’s parking lot, I couldn’t help but notice that there wasn’t a light on in the place. The rain wasn’t so much a challenge as the frozen snow underneath it. I managed to rally out and try all of the doors, but with no luck. As I turned around I noticed another car pulling up and a woman rolled down her window asking if I was here to make a donation. She too had spoken to the Red Cross, who had said the church would be open until 7 pm. Well, it was 6:30 and we both agreed that there was no one to be found. This nice woman said that she would drive over to the fire station and see if they could help out and I replied that I unfortunately had to leave right now in order to get my borrowed car back on time. Could she help me out?

There was a pregnant pause in the air, and I asked if she had any room in her trunk. At that point her husband came out of the car and we both struggled over the ice and cascading streams to get my goods crammed into their trunk. I thanked her enormously and with that, I was back on the road to retrace my steps home. Somehow I made it to the parking lot with five minutes to spare.

Who do you think I have to thank for that little miracle of travel? Good car karma and good roadside assistance from the great provider. Amen!