First Car...

My daughter sent pictures of my oldest Grandson this week practicing his driving. Jackson will be getting his driver’s permit soon, how can that be? He amazed us when he was barely 2 and could name the make of cars, any car. He loved playing with his Hot Wheels and would spend hours setting up “car shows” or “car lots.” Maybe it was in his blood since my Dad had a garage and car lots while I was growing up.

My first car was a blue Chevy Corvair. Yes, the one that Ralph Nader later deemed a death trap! But in 1968 it was just a cute little car and it got great gas mileage. We were paying about 29 cents a gallon at that point so it wasn’t too big an issue! I had “practiced” driving for years, anytime we were at my Grandparents I would drive Grandpa’s old International pick-up. He would go check on the cows which meant a free driving lesson in the pastures. The roads were rough but inter-connected to the small community of Lead Hill, a sleepy little town of 100. We would end up in town and I can still remember that cold sweaty feeling that I would get when the tires would cross from dirt to asphalt.

The summer I turned 16 I studied like crazy and after 2 tries passed my test. License in hand I hot-footed it down to my Dad’s used car lot. He had several on the lot to pick from, but only two that were smaller than the Queen Mary! I liked a little tan Chevy Nova and a cute blue Corvair!

I loved that car and the new found freedom. I had a job that paid for gas and clothes, but Mom and Dad provided everything else for me. They helped me to take the baby steps to adulthood, a time when I would be on my own and have to figure it out for myself.

This picture really says a lot. They are getting ready to head out on their own and you hope you’ve done everything in your power to keep them safe. Then it’s their turn to be responsible, to do the right thing. You just hope they were listening to all of those lectures and talks on the way to school!