Love the One You’re With

For the last two days, we’ve been moving Megan back into her college dorm, on Florida’s west coast. It’s a four-hour drive across the state and Megan was about ten miles ahead of us during the last part of the trip. We were on the lookout for synchros. They often happen when we travel.

During the drive, Rob and I were talking about how Megan’s car insurance rates should be lowered in a few weeks, once she turns 21. “When was her last ticket?” Rob asked.

“Probably two years ago,” I replied. “It should be off her record by now.”

A few minutes later, my cell rings. It’s Megan. “Uh, mom, I’m at the exit and I was just in an accident. I was stopped, must’ve taken my foot off the brake, and my car rolled into the van in front of me. I’m okay,” she added quickly. “Everyone’s okay.”

Synchro 1. About a minute after we’d been talking about her insurance rates, we get her call.

She wasn’t  moving more than 2 or 3 miles an hour, but the van had a trailer hitcher  that had gone through the fender of Megan’s car and now, she said, the car “sounded weird.” The driver of the van, a county employee, was obligated to call the police because he was in a county vehicle.

By the time we got to the exit, the cop was there, the van’s driver was standing next to Megan’s car, and Megan, shaken up, was in her car, fiddling with the air conditioner. The “weird sound” happened whenever she turned the AC on.

It was August hot, incredibly humid, not much of a breeze, and the five of us stood around, sweating, guzzling water, as the cop went through the whole process.  Yes, he would have to write her a ticket for careless driving.He felt bad about it, practically apologized for having to do it. The van driver felt that bad that he was obligated to call the cops (or lose his job). We all felt bad, especially Megan, who was just trying to get moved into her dorm for her senior year.

When we finally left the exit, Megan rode with Rob and I drove her car the 7 miles to campus. Without air, I felt like a lobster being broiled alive.I tried the AC a couple of times, but it sounded like a rabid dog on steroids. You simply can’t get by in Florida in the summer without air conditioning. I know practically nothing about cars, but when you drive a vehicle often enough, you get an intuitive sense about it. My sense was that the engine wasn’t damaged, but that the repairs weren’t going to be cheap.

On the way to campus, Megan filed the report with the insurance company and got an appointment the next day with an insurance appraiser. We got her moved into her dorm, then she found out she had several classes at the time of the appraisal, so Rob and I said we’d take her car in.

That evening, with Megan settled into the dorm, Rob and I went into downtown Sarasota and stopped at the place in the photo for a drink. We talked about what the repairs to the car might cost and decided to file an insurance claim. We’ve been paying for the insurance for years and never have filed a claimed. Besides, her insurance rate was going to rise regardless. We were both feeling uneasy about everything.

A band was playing – a local group – Big T and the Tornadoes. The black piano player burned up the keyboard and you could tell he was really enjoying himself. I kept thinking about enjoyment and the law of attraction, and wondered what all of this was really about. Suddenly, the band started playing Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young’s Love the One You’re With.

Synchro 2.   This song has particular significance for me. In my novel, Esperanza, which will be released 9/14, one of the characters, Dominica,  always “loves the one she’s with.” It’s her litany, her reason for being. “Rob, that’s Dominica’s song,” I exclaimed.

We both laughed at the irony. Of all the songs in the universe, why this one?  Because regardless of what we attract – good and bad – as a family, we three MacGregors stick together. I suddenly felt everything would work out okay with the car.

Sure enough, it worked out better than either of us expected. The total cost for repairs: $1400. With our deductible, we’re out $500. The entire front fender will be replaced – and it already had plenty of bumps and bruises – and the AC will be repaired. Even though most car rental agencies won’t rent to anyone under 25, Megan will be able to rent a car for the three days or so it will take for the repairs.The car will look like new, the AC will work again.

And, in the end, no one was hurt. That was the best part of it all.