In a series to celebrate XPENG’s partnership with new movie A Big Bold Beautiful Journey, four writers share memories of the journeys that made them who they are.
I still clearly remember the sheer delight of climbing into the passenger seat next to my dad, and buckling my seatbelt. “Are you ready?” he would ask, as I nodded fiercely. I’d glance over my shoulder to wave at my mum through the window. She’d be standing at the front door, waiting to see us off. I was 11 years old and thrilled to be riding shotgun. “We’ll be back shortly,” my dad would call out, before slipping our trusty family car into drive. And, we were off: dad and daughter, on a mission to …
The tip.
Now, I know a trip to a big refuse site doesn’t exactly sound exciting, but it was all about the journey with Dad. We’d always enjoyed regular weekend drives as a family since I was a toddler – and during my teenage years, running typical weekend errands became “our thing”. We’d nip to the garden centre, the car wash and the local shops. But it was really those precious minutes spent by his side in the car that I never wanted to end.
I’d always ride shotgun, of course, and that short drive would become our time to talk – like, really talk. Dad would ask about my week at school and I’d tell him about yet another friendship drama. He’d listen patiently to stories of girls being girls, showing genuine interest in my every word. When we moved on to the topic of studying, I’d bombard him with all the maths conundrums that I couldn’t quite get my head around during the lesson. Of course, he’d know every answer. Then my favourite song of the moment would come on the radio and I’d share every fact about this brand new band that I was obsessed with. “OK, here you go,” Dad would laugh and turn up the radio so I could sing along. He would have heard the same handful of songs on repeat hundreds of times.
On arrival at the tip, we’d join the queue with other families – their car boots piled up with old wooden furniture, electronics that no longer worked and stuffed bin bags – and park side-by-side as we offloaded our unwanted cargo into the giant skips. It was loud there, the sound of cars revving in and out of the parking bays echoed across the site. Usually, Dad and I would stop by the big container dedicated to garden waste first and pull out sacks of pruned branches and grass cuttings. Occasionally, we’d each take the end of an old sleeper or fence post and toss it into the wood section with gusto.
Fast-forward 30 years and that humble family ritual is still a part of our lives. Alongside Mum and my husband, we continue to garden together and I still get to be Dad’s sidekick when it comes to running errands. Importantly, we never miss a trip to the tip, the garden centre and the shops together if we can help it, and I still ride shotgun. Although nowadays, the drive is a noticeably different experience.
Our conversations are no longer centred around school but are about working life and the challenges and successes of being a writer in 2025. We speak about retirement too, and the endless list of tasks that fill Dad’s day. When a great song comes on, it’s because one of us has picked an old track we both love, from an extensive catalogue of music available to stream. There are still plenty of conundrums that I need advice on – but they’re no longer maths-based problems, but life decisions. I feel thankful for these stolen moments; a time for just ‘us’.
While our old family hatchback served us well, Dad now has a car that is as safe and easy to handle in narrow city streets as it is on motorways. The in-built driver assistance system comes with aids we would never have dreamed of in those early days – such as that can be custom programmed for optimal comfort from the console, a GPS system that tracks traffic in real time, and automated braking, accelerating and lane steering that can take the strain off on longer drives.
Those short drives together, which were the foundation of my childhood, have now transformed into beautiful moments of respite within two busy adult lives – and I wouldn’t change them for the world. While the journeys we take have adapted, evolved and modernised, our dad-daughter bond hasn’t changed a bit. I’m so grateful to still be making these everyday journeys with Dad, they’re something I’ll always treasure.
A Big Bold Beautiful Journey
Some doors bring you to your past. Some doors lead you to your future. And some doors change everything. Sarah (Margot Robbie) and David (Colin Farrell) are single strangers who meet at a mutual friend’s wedding and soon, through a surprising twist of fate, find themselves on A Big Bold Beautiful Journey – a funny, fantastical, sweeping adventure together where they get to re-live important moments from their respective pasts, illuminating how they got to where they are in the present … and possibly getting a chance to alter their futures.
XPENG, the high-tech global mobility brand, collaborates with A Big Bold Beautiful Journey, the highly anticipated romantic adventure, only in cinemas 19 September 2025. Together they share the spirit of discovery and transformation through cutting-edge technology, reflecting on defining moments and life-changing adventures. Just as the film’s protagonists Sarah and David embark on a fantastical journey that allows them to revisit pivotal moments from their past, XPENG’s ultra-smart vehicles are designed to take drivers further – enabling your very own big, bold, beautiful journey. Discover more
