A Happy Marriage by Celia Woodruff
There they snuggle, the racy little red sports model and the comfortable blue family saloon! It’s been years, nearly 50, since they were parked up in the same garage space, jostling for position and finding the exact spot in which to be, come rain or shine, heat or cold. And they have always found just the spot where they are neither cramped or separated in their garage space.
Sometimes the sporty little thing has been a little skittish, dreaming up journeys which seemed impossible or improbable, enchanted as she always is with the journey of life’s complicated lanes. But the utter reliability of that family saloon was always able to bring stability and sense into the planning of those journeys, thus avoiding all the possible bangs and scrapes which could otherwise have become the norm. On the other hand, that comfortable family saloon has sometimes been known to get a bit stuck in the mud, being somewhat heavy and cumbersome on routes which required a light touch and nimble manouvres. His sporty accomplice had no such difficulties, coming to the rescue and whisking him away to enjoy all the delights of a secret summer jaunt or a romantic sojourn in the hills.
Joyful celebrations became a marker point in the anniversaries and birthdays which have followed since that first parking up together. Garage space has changed on numerous occasions as they travelled onwards in their loving adventure of life. And they have always found just the right place and spot to park their wheels.
Fifty years on, the magic is still there. Well, she is a little battered and scratched, racy still but perhaps these days more in the vintage class, and he is verging on antique but still running smoothly and as reliable as ever! They are, together, a team like no other. It might be the fireworks which occasionally erupt, it might be the humour they share, it might be the trials they have faced together or it might be the adventures they have enjoyed, one with another.
Who can tell? These two models clearly have a marriage made in heaven. A perfect match. If one is in for repair, the other is there to run the errands and take the load. If one is too small for the job in hand, the other can take it on. If one is just a little cumbersome and corners get tight, the diminutive version handles those bends with aplomb. There is no limit to the versatility this pair have, ranging as they do across the whole spectrum of life’s challenges, managing the twists and turns of their shared journey like the pros they have proved themselves to be. The depth of their love for one another stretches outwards, splashed with humour and tenderness and flirtation in the actions and words each utters to the other. This partnership works! It is a joy to be on a trip with them as they journey on, knowing , as they do, one another inside out. A happy marriage indeed!
Ah, the joy of metaphor!
An enchanting piece, so full of life and energy and very imaginative. Lovely.
From Simon: This piece finds a very cunning way of avoiding sentimentality. With the George Writers, we’ve done exercises before on conveying character by inanimate objects, the belongings and décor with which people surround themselves. And, of course, cars are great indicators of personality. There are people who like to be defined by their BMWs or Range Rovers. So, by describing the excitements and setbacks of life through the experiences of the cars rather than their owners, the writer gives us, the readers, a very clear picture of the strength of the marriage. A tiny criticism… Once or twice, there are repetitions of words too close to each other – for example, ‘spot’ in the first paragraph. The best way round that problem is to read all your writing out loud to yourself. Then you hear those strange little chiming echoes. But, in general, a charming piece which finds an original way to fulfil the brief.