Truck Adventures

Our truck is practically one of our family members. PE drove it while we were dating and it holds a lot of special memories for us. We used it as our wedding get-away vehicle. It is an 1979 Dodge pick-up truck with a lot of character. Because it is an old vehicle, it is fairly easy to fix when it breaks down. Fancy, new cars are a lot more complicated to try and fix yourself. But PE has done a great job at fixing the truck through the years.

I have been the primary driver of the truck for probably the last 5 years. Once PE had to start commuting to work, we let him use the car that has much better gas mileage and is a bit more reliable. I drive the truck around town. Fortunately, if it breaks down, we have family nearby that can come to the rescue. My dad in particular has saved the day many times.

At one point, we had a lot of problems with the truck battery. It was always dying on me. A few times I had to ask strangers to help me jump-start it. We tried a new battery, had the alternator tested, and replaced the voltage regulator. But it continued to die on me.

One day, I had a visiting teaching appointment. I loaded the kids in the truck, and when I started the truck, I heard the dreaded clicking sound. A dead battery. Now, the truck can be tricky to start, but I have never been able to get it started after hearing that clicking noise. Well, the kids and I said a little prayer, and I tried starting it one more time. It worked! I was so grateful! We were able to make it to the visiting teaching appointment and back home.

Well, the next day we loaded up to go get groceries. Once again, I heard the dreaded clicking noise. After another prayer, the truck did not start. But suddenly my eyes were drawn to something in the garage. We were house sitting for my in-laws at that point, and so I wasn't aware of everything they had in their garage. But when I got out to look at it, I saw that it was a car battery charger! Hallelujah! We ended up using it quite a lot over the next few months. So sometimes, the Lord gives you the instant answer to your prayers, and sometimes He provides the way for you to take care of it.

Eventually, PE replaced some of the wiring in the truck, and that seemed to fix that issue. There was a short somewhere, and the battery was never getting fully charged. We also had issues with the headlights dimming when you had your foot off the gas pedal. Replacing the wiring also fixed that issue! It was nice to drive around with more confidence that I wouldn't get stuck somewhere.

That is, until the next adventure began...