The Majority...

I've often struggled with believing that not driving is a huge weakness.Almost like I'm less of a person if it isn't the best thing for me to try and stay in my lane, and steer my way from one place to another. No question, in our society today, the ideal way to get around quickly is to drive, usually. But what did people do before cars, anyway? Hmmm... If my information is correct, then, Karl Benz invented the first modern automobile in 1886. Now, there were apparently many different attempts before then at motorized transportation, but basically, people began learning about driving about 127 years ago. And considering that we then had to begin to master new industries, like oil, gasoline, DMV offices, auto parts, etc., I would guess that driving, as we know it, has only been around for about 100 years.

Let's see, so in about 6,000 years of creation, we've been driving cars for only the last hundred. Six thousand...one hundred. Six thousand...one hundred. Gee, I figure, in not driving, I may not have ONE thing in common with the people around me today, but I fit in great with THOUSANDS of generations of people before the last hundred years. Wow. I remember high school...the overwhelming wait that a teen goes through before they can drive (haha :). Will it ever be OVER?? Course, my experience was different, in that, I began discovering that it's better for me not to drive. I took driver's Ed. and got my pink slip. I went and took driver's tests, and failed them...and then passed, and got my permit. I took driver's training, which was difficult to pay for. But actually, I learned, that I could get in a car and drive...I just really shouldn't be. Now, the reasons that I really shouldn't be driving don't need to be disclosed here. The point is...I am suddenly DEFENITELY part of a huge MAJORITY...rather then a minority.

Good grief! I mean, I usually feel awkward because I think I'm so different...I seem to stick out like a sore thumb. The fact is, most people in all HISTORY have never driven! The irony is...all of the sudden it's dawning on me that I am quite privelidged because I HAVE driven cars! I just never got the license, and then shelled out all the money for a car...which is very practical, because I could never afford it anyway! I'm just living in a time set apart, because for the last few generations, people have driven...so this is the the majority that I have always seen, and wondered why I couldn't be a part of it. But as I've explained...I have been part of it as well. Only the last three generations around me have driven anyway. My grandmother, my mother and my younger siblings drive. My great grandmother did not drive. She could have, she just didn't. It's actually four generations because I skipped my own generation. But still...four generations in all HISTORY?? That's it. So,I would say, those of you who don't drive, I would say, take heart! We are actually in excellent company! I It's just hard to see this reality because driving seems to certainly be the norm today. It's only been a very short season of very rapid changes...changes that can leave someone who has to ask for rides, feeling like they have not gained independence.

I think, for the first time, I'm just gonna say I'm not worried about it! :)

Unexpected...

I hadn't been to church in a while...truthfully, in a long time. A friend of mine had said to me that I could let her know any time, and I could ride with her. I missed everything. I missed my friend's. I missed the fellowship. I missed my connections with people I truly cared about...and I know they care about me. A couple weeks into it, my friend mentioned to me that she was glad I'd gotten in touch with her, and asked her to start coming again. Apparently she'd been missing church lately, and would always regret it afterwards (you shoulda gone...You shoulda gone. That type a thing.)

My friend said she knew that because she was picking me up, it was a sure way to get her there too. I was pleasantly surprised! I was so grateful because my friend was helping me...but I had no idea that I was helping her too. What an amazing thing! Here I was just hoping that picking me up was not an inconvenience...even though I'd been assured that it was no problem. I never thought that someone else might've "needed" my need. My way of thinking is always, just learn to handle everything yourself and stay out of the way. But God (I feel) wants us to relate and share with each other. He has ways of keeping us still and then placing us right in someone's path at just the right time! :). Sometimes, he let's us struggle just enough until we ask for help. Anyway, I love little surprises like that! If I'd had a car, it never would've happened. :)

Safety

I tend to over-react, and over-correct. It's just a fact. Neither of these are safe when dealing with the many hindrances of driving. I also tend to get emotional easily. Some people use driving to clear their head, I know; but when I was taking driver training in my early twenties, sometimes the process just made me want to cry. For me, walking is a much better stress reliever. Not to mention, you can feel the wind on your face, and there is no need for gas money. Hey, I'll go with that!