Greatest Desire

I used to dream of having a yellow Mini Cooper, once upon a time. A bit of a strange or silly car for sophomore-year me to want, but it seemed so luxurious to me. I had always wanted a luxury car, and at the time, the student body president drove a red convertible Mini. I really looked up to her. Maybe an adolescent me made some kind of connection between the virtues of my friend and her car, or maybe I was envious of her seemingly perfect life, or maybe both, but this made me want the car all the more. Then, I must have thought that a Mini Cooper would have solved all my problems and then some, but looking back, I know it would have provided me with the same as any car--a means of transport, a means of making memories with friends and family, and lessons to be learned. I never did get the yellow Mini: instead, I got a Forest Green Kia Soul, 2014. I think I was just as excited for my Kia as I would have been for any car. I was sixteen and so ready to experience the freedom of having a car. While my Kia did not provide me with what sixteen-year-old me thought a Mini Cooper would, who I am today is more than grateful for what it has provided. My Kia Soul has given me safe and reliable transport, both around town and on the highway between Phoenix and Yuma, it has allowed me to go on day trips and spontaneous adventures with my friends, and it has given me the memories of learning how to drive on my neighborhood streets. At the end of the day, I don’t think that I really want that yellow Mini Cooper as badly as I did then. Plus, the warranty on my Kia is good for another five years, or 50,000 miles!