First through Convertible

The narrator, Lyman, talks about his experiences with a red convertible that he owned with his brother, Henry Jr. Lyman earned money easily and quickly, eventually becoming the owner of a cafe. However, the cafe was destroyed in a tornado and he lost everything. Before losing it all, he bought the red Olds with Henry. They had money without any specific plans, and they took a ride to Winnipeg. The Red Convertible by Louise Erditsch. I was the first one to drive a convertible on my reservation and of course it was red, a red Olds. I owned that car along with my brother Henry Jr. We owned it together until his boots filled with water on a windy night and he bought out my share. Now Henry owns the whole car and his younger brother Lyman, that's myself, Lyman walks everywhere he goes. How did I earn enough money to buy my share in the first place? My one talent was I could always make money. I had a touch for it, unusual in a chippewa. From the first I was different that way and everyone recognized it. I was the only kid they let in the American Legion Hall to shine shoes for example and the one Christmas I sold spiritual O.K.'s for the mission, door to door. The nuns let me keep a percentage. As I started it seemed the more money I made the easier the money came. Everyone encouraged it. When I was 15 I got a job washing dishes at the Joliet Cafe and that was where my first big break happened. It wasn't long before I was promoted to busing tables and then the short order cook quit and I was hired to take her place. No sooner than you know it I was managing the Joliet. The rest is history. I went on managing. I soon became part owner and of course there was no stopping me then. It wasn't long before the whole thing was mine. After I had owned the Joliet for one year it blew over in the worst tornado ever seen around here. The whole operation was smashed to bits, a total loss. The fire lighter was up in a tree, the grill torn in half like it was paper. I was only 16. I had it all in my mother's name and I lost it quick but before I lost it I had every one of my relatives and their relatives to dinner and I also bought that Red Olds I mentioned along with Henry. The first time we saw it, I'll tell you when, the first we saw it. We had gotten a ride up to Winnipeg and both of us had money. Don't ask me why because we never mentioned a car or anything. We just all had our money. Mine was cash, a big bankroll from the Joliet's insurance. Henry had two checks, a week's extra pay for being laid off and his regular check from the Juul bearing plant.