MA'AM YOUR ARM IS BROKEN

Ma'am your arm is broken. Why are you cleaning this car? A buyer's coming this afternoon. You're selling the Mini? I need the money. I can't afford everything right now. How much did he offer you? $800. Please don't sell it today. Let me clean it first. This classic Mini Cooper had its elderly owner sweeping it one-handed…until learned she was preparing to sell it for $800. This classic Mini Cooper had been sitting beneath the same tree for nearly 15 years when I found 81 year old struggling to sweep wet leaves from its hood with one hand. Her other arm was in a cast after a recent fall. But a buyer was coming that afternoon and she wanted the car to look presentable. He had offered her just $800 and Eleanor was preparing to accept it. Before I show was willing to so cheaply. You're watching from. Know how far Eleanor's story reaches. The Mini had belonged to her late husband Frank. He loved the unusual right hand drive car. For years before mechanical problems took it off road. Frank removed the headlights and front grill while trying to repair it and stored the parts inside. But the work was never completed after he passed away. Eleanor couldn't afford to restore so it remained beneath the tree. 15 years of rain and moisture took their toll. Dirt, leaves and mud buried the old repaint oxidized. One tire stopped holding air and water leaking into the caused severe rust in the front floor. Because the Mini looked abandoned beside. Someone even sprayed graffiti across the hood and side. Eleanor hated seeing it deteriorate. But she still couldn't bring herself to sell. One of the last things Frank had left behind. That changed a few weeks before I met her. Eleanor fell at home and broke her arm. Living alone suddenly became much harder. And medical expenses plus the extra help she needed began eating into her limited retirement income. She finally put the Mini up for sale when someone offered $800 and promised to remove it quickly. Eleanor agreed. Frank would have sell his car before I struggled over money. She told me that was why an 81 year old woman in a cast was trying to clean a 15 year abandoned car herself. I couldn't promise the Mini was valuable. But she deserved to know what she actually had before letting it for $800. We removed years of leaves, mud and grime. The old paint had been poorly refinished and remained. So there was no miracle transformation. But careful cleaning and polishing improved what was still there. Then we found the missing headlights and grille stored inside exactly left them. One tire was completely ruined. So we fitted the spare to make the car movable. Inside thick dust covered everything. The carpet was badly stained. The seats and foam had deteriorated. Interior was cleared. We found large the front floor from years of moisture. The Mini wasn't restored. But for the first time in 15 years Eleanor could see the little car instead of a pile of leaves and dirt. She slowly walked placed her good hand on the hood. I thought selling his car meant him go. She said but Frank wouldn't want me hurting myself just to keep it. Eleanor still needed to sell. Cleaning the Mini couldn't erase her bills. Didn't have to accept the first offer simply because she was desperate. She turned down the $800 and decided to have the Mini properly evaluated before choosing a buyer. Before going Eleanor looked back at the car. Frank would have wanted somebody to save it. She said and to be okay too. Then she smiled. Maybe God sent you before I for almost nothing. What would you do in Eleanor's position? Keep the last car your husband left behind when you truly needed the money? Tell me what you think this right hand drive Mini is worth and leave a comment. God bless Eleanor. If you hope Frank's little car chance.