This March, for my 27th birthday, I finally took the leap and bought my very first car – a Celestite Blue 2022 Toyota Corolla that I purchased used, from CarMax. Her name (because of course, she’s a girl) is Cora the Corolla, similar to the silver Nissan Pathfinder my mom owned for nearly my entire life, which she called “Pathy.” She’s sleek, reliable, and already decorated with little crochet flowers and plants from Etsy.
For years, Uber was my go-to. When I was 16 and my friends (and most other people my age) were excited about getting their licenses and first cars, I just wasn’t ready – the thought of driving with thousands of other people on the road at a time gave me a sense of nervousness and anxiety that I didn’t feel about most other things. I’ve never been a thrill-seeker or one of those people who enjoys things that scare me – from horror movies to roller coasters, I have always actively avoided activities that give me a sense of fear or danger, even something as necessary in Georgia as driving.
Even after getting my license (which I was the last in my friend group to do), I was obviously more comfortable with driving, but still put off getting a car, mostly because of financial goals, but also, in part, because of some lingering fear that was still there. By the end of last year, though, I knew that I wanted 2025 to look different, and that I had wasted so much time, money, and more by not having my own car.
I spent the first few months of this year looking for the car I knew I wanted – a Toyota Corolla because that’s what I had driven the most and felt comfortable with, in the color Celestite Blue, because of course, I had to have a car in a unique color – and even lost out on one I looked at for a few weeks online because it sold.
I secured my own financing via a local credit union, which I had always heard was the best way to get a car with a great interest rate, and lessen the hassle at car dealerships. I finally found Cora on CarMax, booked an appointment to test drive her, and brought my dad along to make sure I was getting the best price and, of course, that all the safety details on the car checked out.
After test-driving Cora, I initially walked away without making the purchase. My dad had given me great advice – Cora was only the second car I had test-driven, Corollas are pretty small, and I hadn’t really looked into any other types of cars, so it would help to consider those things before making a final decision. But, when I did test drive Cora, I knew it felt like a perfect fit, and after talking to my mom, I decided to call the salesman and move forward with purchasing my first car.
Now, nearly five months later, my car has become one of my favorite places to be. Something that used to bring me anxiety is now something that I enjoy, and feel proud of myself for doing. Purchasing Cora was an incredible, life-changing milestone for me, and helped me realize how much mental blocks can take away from you and hold you back. Overcoming worry isn’t hard, but 99% of the time, it’s worth it!
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