Wow!!! My son got his driving permit. I have millions of feelings going thru me right now. Not yet 16 and already behind the wheels of a car.

It seems yesterday that he was moved from his car seat to the booster seat.

How stressful it was for me when he was able to move in front of the passenger seat. He felt like the cat that swallowed the canary. I stopped breathing with fear.

I, we, felt happy when he announced that he was not too keen to drive right the way, and if we did not mind that he waited. Not mind? We were in heaven. The longer we postpone this the better we felt. And just like that at 9 pm he came into my room and announced that he passed his test and he is ready to drive. No warning, no discussion…. he felt ready.

Of course, the first thing I did was to set him up with a driving instructor for road lessons. Lessons given by police officers and he will be exposed to all they do and don’t and it will not come out of mom and dad’s mouth, how great is that? We do not feel that we are taking the easy way out, but when we learned how to drive the seat belt law was not in existence even fewer airbags. Things have changed and this is our opportunity to both learn something new.

And then I called our insurance agent and that I am still in shock.

My insurance will double and some. All he has to do is to keep honor grade, do all the driving prevention classes and on and on and on, and all that will be added toward a tiny bitty little of a discount.

With a sweet smile, our agent told us that if we had a girl it would be less. Well, miss smartypants, and I love our agent so it is with love that I say this, we have a boy. And why is it less for a girl than for a boy? And no, do not tell me that boys are more aggressive. I have met plenty of aggressive girls drivers. Or maybe I think that my baby, the apple of my eyes, my angel will not speed. However, this saying flashed upon me “The apple does not fall far from the tree” and I had a huge gulp. I am pedal to the metal driver therefore I am going to leave that alone…

All of a sudden we are looking at cars with all the safety bells and more to protect him. If it was up to me, he will be driving a tank. I think that is safe enough for him, don’t you?

This is another rite of passage. Another life lesson, trust, and let go. But it is my baby and I am not ready to let go yet. There will be plenty of time to let go.

The glee of happiness in his eyes when he was handed the keys of the car to drive to school, was not only precious but heart warming. All of a sudden he was grown up, no more the baby that used to sit on my laps and cuddle. The stride of confidence was well present once he was seated on the driver seat and was checking all the mirrors and familiarizing himself with the dashboard. That look that I always saw in others and was wondering when the day will come for us to experience it.

The serene pull out of the driveway. Lowering the window to say “Bye mom, I love you” made all the worries go away. The excitement of the next step on his life is here, and we get to be participants. Truly God’s blessing.