The Race of Life

"Yes, one more lap. I live my life for one more lap. I give my life for one more lap! Please, God, please give me one more lap!" (132)
Enzo learned from Denny that racing a car plays a role in everyday life. Enzo wants to experience racing as a human. He is begging God for one more lap as his whole world revolves around racing. Enzo's entire life is based on his knowledge of racing. All the time Enzo has spent learning about racing has come to this one moment. One last lap. His last chance to experience racing firsthand before coming back to the world as a man.
"Faster! The feeling. The sensation. The movement. The speed. The car. The tires. The sound. The wind. The track surface. The exit. The shift point. The braking zone. The ride. It's all about the ride." (133)
Enzo rarely gets the chance to experience the thrill of the racing world. When Enzo is given the opportunity to accompany Denny in his race care he is excited. Enzo feels the wind in his fur and enjoys hearing the roar of the engine. Enzo's description of the ride is a metaphor of life. The negative and positive aspects life. Enzo has had a lot of negativity in his life at this point. The ride is his way of escaping the fact that he's not human.
"I couldn't read their body language because I couldn't see them, but there are some things a dog can sense. Tension. Fear. Anxiety." (63)
Dogs can sense are far more advanced than humans. They have the ability to sense danger and comfort their human in their time of need. Enzo is clarifying that even dogs share similar feelings with humans. Dogs are sympathetic towards their owners and are aware if the world around. Enzo is expressing to the reader that he understands the environment of the room he's in with his owners isn't peaceful. But as tensions rise Enzo is adapting to a new home environment.
"In racing, they say that your car goes where your eyes go. The driver who cannot tear his eyes away from the wall as he spins out of control will meet that wall; the driver who looks down the track as he feels his tires break free will regain control of his vehicle. Your car goes where your eyes go. Simply another way of saying that you make your own destiny. I know it's true; racing doesn't lie." (68)
Enzo is fascinated by racing. Enzo remains faithful to racing even though it raises tensions in his household. He believes his destiny is to die and come back to earth as a man. Enzo is determined to make racing a major part of his life when he comes back as a man. He will always believe that racing is the answer to everything. Racing has always been a part of his life and always will be.
"This is something I'd heard him say before: getting angry at another driver for a driving incident is pointless. You need to watch the drivers around you, understand their skill, confidence, and aggression levels, and drive with them accordingly." (75)
Denny's understanding if his fellow drivers can be compared to having an enemy. Drivers have to study each other's tactics in order to predict what their next move will be on the race track. When you have an enemy you have to search for their weaknesses in order to beat them at their own game. Trying to get close to your enemy means pretending to be their friend. Drivers have to play nice in order to stay on point. The relationship between a driver and having an enemy are similar in more ways than one.

Credits:

Created with images by S. Bhaskara Rao India - "Sunrise Love" • OnPointMediaSolutions - "sunset raceway racetrack" • Myriams-Fotos - "sunset sun windräder" • JanBaby - "mountain road winding road travel" • Zajcsik - "lightning storm night" • cogdogblog - "Practicing My Sad Eyes Look" • wobogre - "nature landscape field" • Dieter_G - "lüneburg heath heide heather blossoms" • Joseph Jayanth - "Bokeh -Marina Beach Road"

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