When Daddy let me drive

Our youngest son, Benjamin, is 12 years old.  About a year ago, on the way home from church, I'd let him sit on my lap and drive home.  I'd "work the pedals."  All he needed to do was hold onto the steering wheel and keep it between the ditches.  I wanted Benjamin to learn how to drive and to be a safe and confident motorist.  Once steering is mastered, you can teach them to work the brakes and the 'gas,' as we like to say.

Benjamin getting some advice on driving from his older brother

Growing up on the farm, I learned to drive at a very young age for a couple of reasons.  First, there was work to be done which required being able to learn to drive a vehicle or a tractor in order to be useful and productive.  Secondly, we were out in the middle of wide open fields.  There was really not much damage you could do other than put the vehicle or tractor into the ditch that surrounded the field.  Believe me, things I drove ended up in ditches more often than I'd like to admit, but practice makes perfect, and before long I learned to drive.

Not much damage can occur in the middle of the field

Laura Lee and Russ both learned to drive on the dirt roads of rural Jefferson Davis Parish and they are both safe, proficient drivers.  We've started the same process with Benjamin. 

Benjamin - "When Daddy Let Me Drive"

Besides learning a skill (driving) that is a necessity, learning to drive as a youngster generates great memories and lets your child know that you trust them, believe in them and are confident that they can master the art of driving.  Furthermore, it gives you a great opportunity to affirm them and when they do a good job driving, they feel a sense of accomplishment that is good for their self confidence.

In order to get your Driver's License today, you've got to take Driver's Ed.  When I was in school, it was offered for free through the school system and our football coach, Johnny Buck, taught it.  Now, there are businesses that handle this - and they charge $275 for this.  Ouch!  Learning to drive in the past wasn't such an expensive proposition.

Allen Jackson sings a country song that best illustrates what I'm trying to convey about learning to drive.  It's titled, "When Daddy Let Me Drive," and you can click on the arrow below and watch the video.  I've also copied the lyrics below.  I'd be willing to bet that watching the video and reading the words will take you back to when you learned to drive. 

 

It was painted red
It's stripe was white
It was 18 feet
From the bow to the stern light
2nd hand from a dealer in Atlanta
I rode up with daddy
When he went there to get her
Put on a shine
Put on a motor
Built out of love
And made for water
Ran it for years
Till the transom got rotten
A piece of my childhood that'll never be forgotten
It was, just an old plywood boat
75 johnson with electric choke
A young boy, two hands on the wheel
I cant replace the way it made me feel
And I would turn it shore line, and, make it wide
He'd say, ya can't beat the way an old wood boat rides
Just a little lake across the Alabama line
But I was king of the ocean, when daddy let me drive

Just an old 1/2 ton, short-bed Ford
My uncle bought new, in '64
Daddy got it right
Cause the engine was smokin'
Couple of burnt valves and he had it goin'
He'd let me drive her when we'd haul off a load
Down a dirt strip, where we'd dump trash
Off of Thickpin Road

I would sit on the seat
And stretch my feet out to the pedals
Smiling like a hero that just received his medal
It was just an old hand-me-down ford
With 3 speed on the column
And a dent in the door

A young boy, 2 hands on the wheel
I can't replace the way it, made me feel
And I would press that clutch and I'd keep it right
He'd say a lil' slower son you're doin' just fine
Just a dirt road with trash on each side
But I was Mario Andretti
When daddy let me drive

I'm grown up now 3 daughters of my own
I let 'em drive my old jeep
Cross the pasture at our home
Maybe one day they'll reach back in their file
And pull out that old memory
And think of me and smile, and say
It's just an old worn out jeep
With rusty ole floor boards
Hot on my feet
A young girl, two hands on the wheel
I can't replace the way it, made me feel
And he'd say, turn it left now, and steer it right
Straighten up girl now, you're doin' just fine
Just a lil' valley by the river where we'd ride
But I was high on a mountain, when daddy let me drive
Daddy let me drive
Oh he let me drive
She's just an old plywood boat with a 75 johnson n'electric choke

Proud driver

I have lots of good memories of learning to drive when I was a kid.  As Alan Jackson sings, I do hope our kids will 'reach back in their file' and pull out memories of their childhood and smile.