Welcome back to Tire Mom! One thing you’ll need to know about the

journey is that I didn’t just set out and drive willy-nilly across the country. I

divided the trip into 4 Loops. You and I are on the first one now.

On April 10, 2018, Wolverine, Gimli and I set out for

Chatham County, North Carolina, to buy tires for my friend Eileen.     

As I drove down Route 85, I felt a calm. It was an unfamiliar sensation at

     that point in my life, but not surprising, given the lushness that blanketed

     either side of the road. It was like driving through a rich green tunnel.

Eileen had picked out the best tire shop in town. I think she was

surprised, if not a little embarrassed, that in spite of that good reputation I

asked the technician a lot of questions. I mean, a lot. Yeah, I was beginning to

realize I wasn’t always going to make a friend in every tire shop I went to!

This was where I also saw very clearly that the whole VW and trailer

thing would have been a distraction from my purpose.  I left the tire store with

a new sense of clear purpose. I completely understood what I needed to do and how to

do it. Eileen and her family now knew how to check their “Tire Halo,” and it was my

hope that everyone she knew was going to be on the ground, checking the numbers on

their tires.

Yes. I was doing this.   

But that wasn’t the only thing I gained from my short 24 hours with

Eileen’s group. It was actually a comfort to be with them, something I needed.

I truly wasn’t alone on this journey.

You aren’t either. If you’d like to leave a comment, please do! Tell us who

or what comforts you when loneliness starts to overwhelm you.

Stay Safe,

Diana Hubner, the Tire Mom