Golden Car

Today, as I walked to class, shivering as the wind brought what felt like ice to the skin on my legs by blowing around the hem of my skirt, I noticed a car driving past me that was covered in gold leaves. The blue car looked like it belonged in the woods, and it had probably spent quite a few hours under the trees there on campus. It was one of Chevy's cheap model sedans from a few years ago, the kind of car that a lot of students drive around campus because they can afford them. But as the car almost hit me, I got a clear look at the driver and realized it was one of the most respected faculty members on campus. I wondered if he had to drive a car like that, or if he was just an old-fashioned stingy guy who drove a mediocre car and lived in a mediocre house and had a million dollars in his bank account.
But really, how many people live like that? It is the American way to pour all the money you possibly can into your material possessions, especially into the status symbol of the automobile. And while this man may be different, I at least know he is American.
So what the hell is he doing in Greensburg, PA? Did he grow up here and never lose his attachment to the area, subsequently taking a job to do something he loved in a place he loved even more? Is the car an example of the sacrifices he's made to do what he really wanted? To attain or maintain the peace of mind that he thrives on?
Or did he give up on a world that gave up on him? Did he put himself and his genius out there and not attain what he had been led to believe he could?

The car scared me, and not just because it almost knocked me right off my high heels on this cool October day. It scared me because I assumed that anyone as smart as that driver ought to have every luxury money can buy. What scares me even more, though, is that I was so deeply thrown into thoughts and fears about material accomplishments while severely underrating what that man who I don't know at all has accomplished outside the world of money.