Hot Wheels

When I was a little girl I always wanted to play with my big brother. There was quite a large age gap between the two of us (between all of my brothers and I really), but it didn't ever stop me from wanting to join in on the things he was doing. He loved creating model trucks, riding bikes, and I even remember one summer when he and my cousin created a four wheeled contraption out of an old lawnmower. I was so jealous when they would frantically run past the house pushing one another down the road laughing and acting crazy. I also remember him having several friends over to play softball in the backyard, or to stand in a circle and play hacky sack. I so badly wanted to have the fun they were having, but I always watched from the sidelines. Having my own little boy in the house has caused memories to rush forth from the back of my mind. Things I had tucked away and completely forgotten about are slowly finding their way back to the forefront. Like the fond memories I have of my brother and his Hot Wheel cars. He had two full cases of cars. They were the double stack cases with the small plastic inserts that allowed a safe place for each car. He had them so neatly organized with all of the sports cars in one section, and the trucks and tractor equipment in another. I remember watching him with them and the way he took care of them. It was fascinating to me how gentle he was with them. I kept my eye on them anytime he received new ones, and I had definite favorites. Of course being his sister he hated for me to touch them let alone play with them. My own son has the same love of these little cars that I remember my brother had. It seems that every time he holds one of these cars in his chubby little hands he is immediately sucked into another world that involves lots of noise and racing around. It makes me smile. It makes me remember things that I'm so grateful I haven't forgotten. I hope his collection grows like my brothers collection did. I hope he loves it as much too. This time around I will get to play cars though. I will make new memories to store away so that I can bring them forward once more and smile. I'm glad his small collection reminded me of these things.