Come Ride With Me In A Ford Model T

By Ken Hanson

People will ask me time and again,
“Why do you like to drive that old car?”
I’ll tell ‘em because of the reaction it gets,
When spotted from near or afar.

Heads will turn, fingers will point,
Sometimes I’ll hear a “Gee Whiz.”
But the reactions I like are from people old enough,
To know what a Model T is.

This particular car made in 1927,
Was one of the last ever made.
It looks nearly new, and runs like it too,
They don’t make ‘em like that anymore, I’m afraid.

A few years ago I was lucky to find,
This Tin Lizzie already restored.
A real piece of History, the last of it’s kind,
Made by Sir Henry Ford.

On a warm day last summer, a friend of mine called,
And asked me, “What are you doing today?”
“The Conner House in Canyon, an assisted living center,
Is having a 1930’s display.”

“Could you bring that old car of yours down here to show,
It would fit in with all of the rest of the frills.”
“I’ll go you one better, if we can get ‘em inside,
I’ll take ‘em for a spin around Hunsley Hills!”

I spent most of the day driving people around,
A good time was had by all.
We had ‘em lined up on the sidewalk out front,
The young and the old, the big and the small.

We had ‘em in wheelchairs and electric scooters,
Some leaning on a walker or a cane or me.
We’ll get you settled all comfy inside,
And go for a ride in this old Model T.

I wonder what the people in that neighborhood thought,
When they saw that old Fliver again and again.
I doubt they were having as much fun as us,
Judging from the size of my passenger’s grin.

One delightful young lady of one hundred and two,
With hair as white as the driven snow.
When I said, “Let’s run away together,”
She said, “Fill ‘er up, I’m ready to go!”

Just when I think it’s something really special,
To drive a car this old in a parade.
I have to realize she was twenty three years old,
On the day this car was made.

After a dozen or so trips around Hunsley Hills,
There was a pattern I started to see.
They were enjoying the ride in the car to be sure,
But they really just wanted to talk to me.

I guess that when you live in this place,
And your children are so far away.
It’s hard to see ‘em on a regular basis,
And not very much contact from day to day.

The people around that you see every day,
Help keep you from going stark raving mad.
Still, the lonely creeps in, without friends and family,
Some days you just feel nothing but sad.

I hope I can help drive the lonely away,
Maybe not for forever, but at least for today.
I’m sure that this car ride is fun for you,
But I’ll tell you a secret, It’s fun for me too!

Without exception, people in the car that day,
Would tell me a story or two.
They were obviously remembering days long ago,
A time when their world was still new.

“My father had a car just like this,
I still remember the way it would smell.”
“He would take me to school, or the county fair,
I remember getting stuck one day the snow fell.”

Or, “My Grandma and Grandpa went courting in a car,
That looked just like this in nineteen thirty five.”
“That was a couple of years before my Mama was born,
And now that she’s gone, I’m the last one alive.”

I wish I could have kept all the memories that day,
And passed them along to a daughter or son.
But there were too many, and soon they’ll be fading,
And forgotten by the time that this day is done.

But the thing that I noticed, when they told me their tale,
Their eyes would light up and they’d grin.
And at least for the moment, aches and pains were forgotten,
And they would feel young again!

I guess when you have all these stories inside,
You just want someone to tell them to.
But the staff’s too busy, and your neighbors asleep,
The chances you have to tell them are few.

Then someone comes along that will listen to them,
And you go for a ride in this old Model T.
It’s good to get out on a warm summer day,
To enjoy a drive, and set your memories free.

I hope you enjoyed sharing your tales,
As much as I did, for you see,
They’re much too important to keep to yourself,
To share them with others is the way it should be.

Now one of these days, not too soon I hope,
You’ll be reunited with family and friend.
So do what you can to keep memories alive,
For they’ll want to hear them again.

“Why do you like to drive that old car?”
People ask me, I reply with a grin.
“It’s not just a car, it’s a time machine,
It makes old people young again!”