My neighbor, Mr. Mike, has backed his trucked into his garage for as long as I’ve known him. I wonder if it’s some kind of test for him personally, like the day he backs into the house is when he parks his truck for good, or maybe it’s just a guy thing because the flow of traffic comes to a halt while they back into a parking space.

Mr. Mike has roamed this earth longer than me and he knows things, so I began backing my truck into my driveway. It’s not quite the same as a confined space, but it does hold potential hazards. There’s a steep drop off to the left of the driveway and decorative fencing to the right. There’s a wooden partition at the end to hide the trashcans. My driveway is made of gravel, so it’s not a smoothly, paved surface, but backing my truck in sure does make it easier to drive out of the driveway.

The first time I did this it was scary and I’m pretty sure I took up the entire driveway by parking smack in the middle, but at least it was done and I knew what to do different next time. I kept at it choosing to back in every so often when returning home and trying to park closer to the edge beside the drop off. If you know me at all, you know I have a fascination with seeing how close I can get to the edge.

As we age, people will encourage us to ‘try new things’ and I’m all for that, but I’m beginning to realize the less we move the more we lose. These things won’t come as naturally as they did in earlier years and may take some coaxing, but we can continue to do these things in smaller segments and at a slower pace.

Mr. Mike doesn’t drive everyday, but every time he returns home, he backs his truck into the garage without fail. It’s done slowly and more carefully as his years progress, but there’s a sigh of relief from both of us as he continues to pass the agility test.

Feature Photo by Patrick Adcock on Unsplash