The Army Truck

Sometimes in spite of weeds, a treasure is uncovered, bringing a smile of a memory forgotten.  Walking in the pasture, I came across our old dump truck with its camouflage design still intact.  Where gravel once sat, now weeds have grown, and those weeds could not stop my giggle as I remembered the first time this dump truck and I met.

Our first meeting was several  years ago when our children were rambunctious young kids and our DVD player had ceased to run.  Before Netflix and Disney Channel existed, I counted on that player as my “babysitter” – with an endless supply of cartoons and children’s shows.  We were struggling on the farm with debt and chores so when I asked to replace the player, Brian’s response was a firm, “No.”  It was later that evening I heard him talking to his friend Larry.  I caught snippets of the conversation – “It sounds like a good purchase” and “A truck like that makes sense to me.”  When he hung up the phone, I asked, “Did you buy a truck?”  He explained that he and Larry had purchased one together.  He insisted it would make us money by hauling gravel.  I was not so convinced.

The next day I returned home from my part time teaching job.  When I drove into the yard, my eyes nearly popped out of my head.  There in the driveway sat not just any truck but a truck sporting a camouflage design.  In disbelief, I walked into the kitchen where both Brian and Larry sat eagerly awaiting my response.  In barely a whisper, I sputtered, “You bought an army truck??? An army truck??”  With wide grins they both said what a great investment it was – it would be a money maker, a useful tool around any farm.  I just shook my head and pounced into the living room, facing my wild little ones. 

The truck became a part of the family and often created a stir in our county.  One day when Brian rolled through Delmar, two men stood along the street and saluted.  Another time when making his way down the county highway, a carload of ladies drove by wildly waved U.S. flags outside their windows.  However, not everyone held the truck with the same appreciation. When the truck transported our daughter to her CCD class in Delmar, she would ask to be dropped a block away – not wanting anyone to see in what she had arrived. 

Shortly after the army truck arrived, I purchased a new DVD player.  Smiling at my husband as I carried it in, I explained at least my DVD player would not be colored in camo. 

Maybe this commercial break that COVID-19 has inserted into our lives is a time to reflect on those hidden treasures we might find surrounding us.  Take time to appreciate that which you have – even those hidden treasures which might be concealed by weeds.