Tongue sticking out of the corner of his mouth.
He accidentally painted the P in REPAIR backward.
When he noticed, he cried.
So I told him we would fix it.
We painted over it in white and tried again.
If you stand close enough today, you can still see the ghost of that backward P underneath the correct one.
I could have paid someone to make a professional sign.
Metal.
Lights.
Perfect lettering.
I never wanted one.
Every morning at 6:30, when I unlock the garage, I look up at that crooked sign.
And I remember exactly why I’m there.
My name is Craig.
I’m thirty-eight.
I’ve been fixing cars since I was fourteen, when my uncle started letting me hang around his shop in Dayton, Ohio, handing him tools.
