Block 51

Driving . . .

looking back now, 

what a seemingly simple

thing to do.

 

Recalling

driving,

with Mom,

back and forth

between the tree line

and the river

at Riverside Park,

until I had

shifting and a clutch

mastered.

Well, 

maybe not mastered,

but good enough 

to try driving 

around the park.

I was so surprised,

and kind of scared,

when Mom told me to

drive us home.

It seemed so far then.

Driving was,

probably,

my rite of passage

into adulthood,

even though 

I was only 16 years old.

I look back on it now

and realize how much trust

Mom had to have in me

to teach me to drive.

She could have waited

for Drivers Ed., instead.

More trust 

had to be there

when I 1st took

the car out on my own.

I can't imagine

sitting home

and waiting for my child

to come home that 1st time

alone driving.

Dear Lord,

Thank you for the blessing of freedom to roam anywhere I wanted in a car. You gave me the skill to drive and my parents the trust in me to allow me to do it. You opened up a whole new world to me, which I still appreciate each time I drive.

Amen

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