Many thoughts were going through my mind, but surprisingly, fear of eminent death was not one of them. As of tonight, the keys have been passed to a new generation. Joseph took his first lesson behind the wheel today. His trainer, Sam, was quite nice and a very good trainer — endlessly patient and unflappable. That said, there was much to make a flap about.
Even though I grew up driving tractors and such before I got in my first card, I think he has a better feel for the pedals than I did at first. Of course, I also did a lot of my early driving in a car with a manual transmission, so that complicated things a bit.
We cruised around the neighborhood for about an hour, making all sorts of turns but staying off the bigger streets for this first lesson. Joe was quite focused the entire time, like when you are first learning to ride a bike. Turns we’re a bit awkward, and he had a similar problem that I experienced in tending to slowly veer to the right as he drove. I think this is natural, as you can’t quite tell the positioning of the right side of the car when sitting in the drivers seat. That is something that will come with time.
Milestones make up our lives, but this is definitely a big one for both Joseph and ourselves. I am proud to say we rode quietly in the back seat during the lesson, neither offering unwanted advice or exclaiming loudly. I know for some that this would be very trying, but I felt we were all in good hands. Now that Joseph has had this lesson, he is allowed to go driving with us. I’ll probably be taking him on some quieter trips to begin with, maybe on some of the less challenging mountain roads, so he gets a feeling for that type of driving, too. Of course, the freeway will eventually call out to us, and that is sure to be an adventure in its own right.
It will be interesting to be riding in the passenger seat while he drives, but also very fulfilling. I love to see him take these leaps into adulthood.
Previously on End of the Day:
- Under the weather…or just being lazy – End of the Day for August 18, 2014
- The long hot summer nights – End of the Day for August 17, 2014
- Looking for the Fall – End of the Day for August 16, 2014
- Let the sun shine in! – End of the Day for August 15, 2014
- Trolls – End of the Day for August 14, 2014
- Here we go again! – End of the Day for August 13, 2014
- Flowers and trees – End of the Day for August 12, 2014
- Rite of passage – End of the Day for August 11, 2014
- A little art – End of the Day for August 10, 2014
- A little night…burlesque! – End of the Day for August 9, 2014
- Another outdoor event tonight – End of the Day for August 8, 2014
- Dealing with stress — poorly – End of the Day for August 6, 2014
- Early rising – End of the Day for August 5, 2014
- It just keeps rolling along – End of the Day for August 4, 2014
- Unseasonable Weather – End of the Day for August 3, 2014
- A little bit of this. A little bit of that. – End of the Day for August 2, 2014
- A gelato evening — End of the Day for August 1, 2014
- End of the Day for July 2014
- End of the Day for June 2014
- End of the Day for May 2014
- End of the Day for April 2014
- End of the Day for March 2014
- End of the Day for February 2014
- End of the Day for January 2014