This email came a few days ago from OUR daughter, about HER daughter, (our 16 year old granddaughter)..."Courtney is officially a new, licensed driver in the state of Texas as of early yesterday morning. I am asking for you to remember Courtney and pray for her safety and protection behind the wheel when you pray for our family. Thank you so very much.
ok, that was the short version. being me, i have more to say. please consider this talk therapy and help a girl out here!
we have tried to make sure to teach the girls important things. we certainly don't have all the answers but we do know The One who does. thankfully, the girls know Him too.
things like cleaning a bathroom and knowing how to do laundry are basic life skills that i'm making sure they know how to do. cooking ... well, Courtney does know how to scramble eggs and she does that often but that's the extent of her interest in the kitchen. the apple doesn't fall far from the tree. Cassidy and Avery are more interested so I will teach them what I know and let Rachael Ray handle the rest.
driving ... this is more than just a basic life skill. this is now a matter of her safety. we have required many, many more hours of her driving with us behind the wheel than the state of Texas requires. Courtney is very mature and responsible for her age but, still, she is 16! i almost quoted some stats here that scare the socks of you but suffice it to say that car crashes are the leading cause of death in teenagers.
courtney has read one book that was pretty light reading but had some good information about driving and i'm requiring her to read another book that is really written to parents about teaching your kids to drive. it is an excellent book with excellent information. philip and i are reading it with her. she will also be signing a contract with us about her driving. so, i'm doing all i know how to do to prepare her, keep her safe and give her confidence behind the wheel.
bottom line ~ i'm trying to keep her ALIVE!
yesterday she picked avery up from a friend's house (lives about 8 minutes away) and brought her home. she had to call me when she got back in the car with avery. then, i allowed her to go get us pizza for dinner from the place a minute and a half away from here. this morning, she took cassidy to school (also about 8 minutes away). she is protected, for now, under our insurance. but today i began making the calls to get the rate quotes to add her, as a licensed driver, to our insurance. she will receive both the discounts they offer new teen drivers: the driving school completed certificate as well as the good student discount. these things are all good.
i know that unless she is given the opportunity to drive, she will not grow and become more independent as a driver. if i can get her insured, she will drive herself to her voice lesson on saturday with my car. it's about 10 minutes from home.
i consider myself a praying girl, but nothing will drop you to your knees faster and make you stay there longer than the safety of your child! i ask you to please join us as we pray for Courtney's safety."
thank you,
aging quickly in allen
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P.S... Courtney, if you are reading this, may it bless your heart to be reminded of how much your parents love you! :) You are definitely on our prayer list too. Poppa smiled as he read your mom's email, remembering an incident with his new car when your mom was in high school!! :)
xoxo
mimi
17 comments:
Sonja - Right there with you, as my daughter's daughter (16 years old) just got her first car for Christmas (10 years old, but her dad made sure it was a SAFE vehicle.) Her mom has done all she could to make sure she is a safe driver -
but , oh how scary it is. I'll pray for Courtney, will you pray for Simone? :)
Blessings to you - Marsha
I can relate to this so well! When our girls turned 16 and got the legal permission to "go", their daily drive included thirty miles on a winding country road which has seen more than its share of fatalities in the years since we have lived here. Every morning was an exercise in faith. Every morning as they left the neighborhood, I lifted the prayers.
I used to make them call here when they got to school. Yes, Sonja, I'm neurotic.
I'm grateful for every mile they have driven safely thus far and won't stop praying for their safety (and that of my "is to come" grandchildren) until God takes me home.
So, from one praying woman to the other: "May He send His angels charge over her..."
This sure brought back memories. All three of our children were teens simultaneously, and two began driving within 15 months of each other. I thought it was normal for mothers of drivings teens to be sick to their stomachs 24/7 and NOT be pregnant :)
I love your daughter's writing style. It's not easy to pen your heart's concerns with wit & wisdom. She's definitely YOUR daughter!
God bless your driver and all who love her.
Kathleen
All of this is so true, and my least favorite thing about parenting has been this whole driving thing. I have one more left to teach drive.
How I dread it but it is so true, you have to let them leave the driveway and go out on their own and make decisions.
It still is never easy.
Very sweet post.
I can so relate when my kids got their license...My granddaughter is only five so at least I have a few more years before I have to be concerned about that issue.
Thank you for sharing this letter form your letter; so precious....
I will be remembering all your granddaughters though.....
Dear Sonja,
I started praying for Courtney while reading, and then for Simone. I love the idea of trading prayers!!! There's nothing like a driver's license to put a mother or a grandmother on bended knees.
When all theories and practice are ended, then it's only God left to care for the children.(That is also the fact in all other aspects of life, but when it comes to car driving one figuratively feels ones shortcomings and helplessness second by second.)
And you know, it's not enough to pray for the safety for the children, we've gotta pray for the other drivers out there as well. Our children's safety is dependant of them being safe and sober drivers too.
How fragile our lives are, and how we all are like chickens dependant of Jesus. Imagine he called himself a hen mother who wanted to keep her chickens safe under her wings.
Such a great love and care in all aspects of live.
We shall of course be moving forwards on bended knees, but we are also allowed to put all our fears on Christ.
To put our hands in the hand of the man who calmed the water.
And keep those cellphones turned off while driving.
I love this, Sonja. It will be all too soon and 3 year old Susanna will be driving someday and I will write letters like your daughter. She's teaching me! May the blood of Jesus keep Courtney safe and may she always dwell under the shadow of the Almighty.
They grow up so quickly, don't they? Praying for Courtney to stay safe as she drives and praying for her mom and Grandma too. :)
Loved this!
I never really understood my mother completely, nor the true depth of her loving heart, until I had children of my own.
And when I did, I also gained a tremendous insight into the heart of God.
It must be hard for Him sometimes to *let us drive* - thankfully, Jesus has us insured, so we are covered (by the blood!) - but it must be hard to watch our many "accidents" and those times when we drive ourselves into a "ditch"!
(I guess I'm neurotic like Debbie - I made my sons call me too - when they arrived at school, and when they left so I could be sure they got home in one piece. I don't do that anymore...well, actually sometimes I still do! A mother's heart...)
GOD BLESS!
AMEN!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Anita
This brought back such memories, I remember when my sons started to drive...like someone stated earlier there is nothing that will bring a momma to her knees faster than her child behind the wheel of a car. You realize you no longer have control..like you ever did.
I still ask my youngest to call us when he is about to make the road trip to see us and call again when he gets back home.
Praying for her safety and for those that love her
Ah, I haven't forgotten those times! You do a lot of praying during that time. I just wanted to wish you a very Happy New Year!
Oh toooooooooo close to home, Stephen turned 16 last Tuesday, and although we aren't letting him drive yet, (only our first got to drive at 16) I have been through this four other times and I can say it never get easier. I will go through it two more times. We quote the stats to them...I even used to tell them of all the teen wrecks that had happened that day, or posted newspaper articles on the ref....even so, I had to let them go and let them grow, which is sooooooooooo scary at times...and it didn't stop at age 16, it grew with each releasing.
So this morning I stop to pray for your daughter...as God grows her spiritual through parenting...the place were we meet Him the most...our journey of parenting.
I've made it through 2 drivers. 2 more to go. Lots of prayers during that time from all of us, grandparents included!
Have a beautiful week, friend. Thank you for your prayers.
peace~elaine
Sonja,
I feel for you and your daughter, mostly because I know that I probably scared my parents pretty good when I got my license and my first car. You'd think my car was my wife that amount of time we spent together. Back then a car was a magic carpet. Today its a fairly mundane tool. On another note, I'm glad you were blessed by my post - link to Andy Andrews' presentation on the Butterfly Effect. I showed to my Sunday School class yesterday and we had a great discussion along similar lines in your comment on my post. Very inspiring and hopeful stuff.
Blessings
Ruben
I have about 6 years to get ready for our first grandchild to drive. I think I ought to begin preparing!
Sweet Sonja,
Thank you for making such a kind effort to visit BOTH of us today! YES, GOD IS THE WHOLE AUTHOR of LOVE, KINDNESS and all the fruits of the spirit. When we do His will, we are doing all that matters. PEACE AND THE LOVE OF CHRIST TO YOU! Anita
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