So we ‘bought’ a van!
Never dreamed that would happen but life has a funny way of bringing irony in to being.
It’s a wheelchair van, with tons of fancy moving parts and remote controlled gadgets. The side door opens with the push of a button, a ramp folds out and I scoot inside. Then I push the same button and the ramp folds up and the door closes. Then I transfer to my driver’s seat, which then with the push of more buttons, electronically swivels and moves me into place so that I can drive. Then I use the installed hand controls to drive the thing around.
It’s a pretty awesome thing, and it makes the world much more accessible to me.
I’m indescribably thankful for it.
But when purchasing the vehicle and asking all the questions I could think of, I never thought to find out one crucial piece of information; how do I open the fuel cap? So I drove around for 2 weeks on the same tank of gas, until finally I start to think maybe I should refuel. I look for a button to open the cap, and it’s no-where to be seen. I push random buttons. Scour the interior. Absolutely nothing.
Still I don’t panic. It’s not unusual for me to miss the obvious. There’s still a quarter tank of gas left. I have time. Erinn will find it for sure.
Well, Erinn couldn’t find it either. Looked high and low.
Nothing.
Panic starts to creep in. I email the sales guy. He’s not the mechanic and doesn’t really know. He suggests a couple of potential locations. Not there either. Then he suggests googling the make and model.
Nothing.
Then he suggests consulting the manual. Turns out they gave me one in French. (Will have to fix that) So that was no help.
I’m running out of gas. Pretty soon this very expensive vehicle with all of these fancy gadgets will be useless if I can’t figure this out. So I call my neighbour Chris. I just know he’s going to find it. He’s a gadgety kind of guy who knows a lot about a lot. He comes over. Tries a bunch of things. Googles a bunch of things.
Nothing!
So if he can’t find it, I’m assuming it doesn’t exist. I’m thinking that when doing all of the retrofitting, they took out the gas cap button or lever and forgot to put one back in. Now what do I do?
I go back in my house and let it go for now. But Chris’ brain is on this. He comes back to the house and asks for the keys; determined to track this thing down. He brings his wife Emma with him this time. She’s a new set of eyes. And voila, she instantly spots it. A tiny lever just underneath where the seatbelt comes out of the van wall. Strangely located for sure. Impossible to spot or access from a driving position.
But there. And functional.
Emma saved the day! I filled up with gas. And have continued to drive this awesome vehicle.
But this little episode reminded me once again that it’s the little things that matter. All the expensive gadgets, big plans, and lavish ideas amount to nothing if the little things aren’t given priority.
A quiet prayer.
A gentle encouragement.
A healthy snack.
A hug and a kiss with my wife.
Taking a Sabbath.
It’s the little things that put fuel in the tank.
So we don’t run outta gas…