Brunnhilde

You see Brunnhilde, the blue Volvo station wagon parked on Cambridge Street, outside Chris’ birthplace. We’d sold our little Brigitte before departing for France, and we had already become a larger family with growing transportation needs.

When people all over the world heard about Mammy’s death, many had sent flowers or cash contributions in lieu of flowers. Pappy decided that we should use some of that for a reliable conveyance. So we did.

Then as now, Volvo enjoyed a reputation for solidity, safety, and durability. With a growing family, we were attracted to these selling points. So we purchased for $2795, by the good offices of Auto-Europe in Paris, our only new car ever: a 1969 Volvo 145R station wagon whom we named Brunnhilde (in recognition of her character as a large, female, Scandinavian).