“Climb in,” Alden tells me, as he settles in the driver’s seat.

I eye the small vehicle apprehensively, but walk inside the shed and climb onto the other seat. Alden turns the key and the engine sputters to life. He taps on the gas pedal, sending us lurching forward down the slight ramp and onto the grass.

We make rapid progress along the packed dirt driveway, but Alden slows as we turn off it and drive down a thin strip of grass situated between two fields that’s just wide enough for the vehicle we’re in.

A building slightly larger than the one we retrieved the cart from appears ahead. It’s set about twenty feet back from an asphalt road, which I don’t notice until a car breezes by. A small white sign hangs on the side of the building that reads Dawson Farm.

Alden turns off the cart and jumps out.

“Where are we?” I ask.

“Mom runs this farm stand during the summer when we’ve got fresh vegetables. People in Arlington will pay a ton for them, unlike the grain and corn we sell to the cattle farms. In the off months, we use it for storage, and people will drop stuff off here rather than driving all the way up to the house.”

Alden disappears around the front of the stand and re-emerges a moment later, clutching a massive pumpkin. He sets it in the back of the cart and disappears again, returning with another, slightly smaller one seconds later.

“Wait until you try Mom’s pumpkin pie,” he adds as he loads the second pumpkin.

I try not to grimace.

“Do you want to drive back?” Alden asks, coming back around to the front of the vehicle.

“I’ve never driven anything like this before,” I reply.

“Well, you’ve driven before, right?”

One joyride and some time on a closely supervised course is the extent of my driving experience, but I nod.

“Then you’ll be fine. Here.” Alden holds the keys out. I take them, and we switch seats.

The cart starts immediately when I turn the key in the ignition, and we sit there idling for a moment before I lightly tap on the gas pedal. We move a few inches.

“Come on, give it some gas!” Alden encourages.

I comply, pressing the pedal down with more force. The cart surges ahead, and soon we’re rapidly barreling down the grass path.

Suddenly, I see brown dirt ahead. I start to turn the wheel, then realize I’m driving too fast. I stomp on the brake, and we careen around the corner back onto the dirt driveway. The front wheel promptly slides off the side of the road into a shallow ditch.

“It’s fine, I’ve done this before,” Alden comforts me. “Just put it in reverse and get back on the driveway.”

I don’t move, so he leans down and fiddles with the gear stick.

“Okay, hit the gas now,” he instructs.

That I know how to do, so I tap on the gas pedal once again. The engine snarls, and a spray of dirt appears on my left.