Every mother makes a sacrifice for her child.   Usually these sacrifices start immediately, once a woman finds out she is pregnant, and in most cases these sacrifices are for the physical health of the mother and her unborn child.   A good example of this is a woman who stops smoking or quits drinking.  Obviously, these vices are not only bad for the mother’s health, but also that for their little one deep within their womb.   Some women even change their eating habits in the hopes that a more nutritious diet will help enrich their baby.  And so like many other women, I have already made sacrifices, mine just haven’t been your typical ones and have even been painful. 

Last week I made what I felt to be the ultimate sacrifice for Davey.   I spent weeks praying over it, going back and forth with my emotions and fighting my pride.  And that was my biggest obstacle……my pride.   So, after a Sunday at church I decided that I was placing too much emphasis on materialistic possessions and told my husband I was ready to let go of Maggie.   Maggie is my car, was my car.   She is a 2009 Mercedes C300, a car I never thought I would own.   A car I worked very hard to keep, but a car that was draining our money.   The car payment alone was atrocious, but mix that with the fact that she only got 29 mpg and required premium gas, and Maggie was a serious money pit.   And I must say, with her palladium grey paint job, Maggie was a beauty.   She was awesome to drive, her smooth leather interior seemed to custom fit the natural curves and flow of a body.   She could even be dropped into manual drive, for those of us who wish to have more of a connection with her.   I can’t even begin to say enough wonderful things about her, in spite of all of her monetary downfalls. 

Maggie was officially sold last week and Eloise, the Equinox, has taken her place.   I cried when letting go of Maggie, but I reminded myself it was the best for Davey.   Eloise is roomier, cheaper by way of car payment, gets 34 mpg, and takes unleaded gas.  I won’t break my back trying to get Davey in and out of his car seat, and of course now my insurance has also dropped.   Eloise was and is the smarter choice, but I still miss my beautiful Maggie.   I almost felt like that Nissan commercial, when the man finds out his wife is expecting and he looks at his Nissan 350Z.   He reminisces about the days of pure enjoyment he had with her and how much he’s going to miss her ride.  But then he thinks of all the new memories he’s going to have with his child and he pulls at the rear bumper of the Z and converts it into a 4 door Maxima.  

I’ve adopted the same personality because no more do I think about Maggie and the days of what could have been.   Now I find myself sitting at a stop light and turning to face the back seat.   I can even see Davey sitting in his car seat, happily laughing along the ride.  I imagine him getting older and singing along to the radio as we go to pick up my husband for lunch.   They’re all happy visions, ones that I hope and look forward to.  So, I suppose, my original trepidation with selling Maggie has pretty much dissipated and my sacrifice wasn’t much of one in the long run.   I wonder what my true sacrifice will end up being for Davey and how many more I will make.   It doesn’t really  matter, though, because what I’m finding is no sacrifice is too big or too small for my child.