My chrysanthemum wants to be a daisy! Arghh.  Everyone around her is getting their driver's permit and Katherine wants her, too.  She is of age and is feverishly studying her state driver's manual and faithfully completing her Driver's Education workbook. While I'm not quite sure she's ready to get behind the wheel of a car, we feel that it's important to let her get the permit.  Sometimes she sees herself as stupid compared to the other kids her age, even though we've had the crocus/chrysanthemum discussion many times (see my post 9/10/05).  But it doesn't change the way she feels (or the way they see her) and she's not a chrysanthemum on everything. And in order for her to continue to bloom, she needs to know that we trust her and have confidence in her. So every now and then, we let her be a daisy, and this is one of those times.  Is she ready to drive?- don't know. Is she ready to have a permit and start learning to drive - yeah, I think so.  Am I ready to let her? welllllllllllllllllllllllll - I was doing okay until this week.

A friend of ours was letting her son (15) drive home down the highway and there was a wreck. From early news reports, it was his fault. Family members have various cut, bruises and franctures, but the driver of the other vehicle died. I'm sure this will be very difficult for the young driver and he may never want to drive again. This makes me scared to push mine too hard. If I give her too much sun and water, my flower could wilt and die; If I keep her in the shade and don't give her what she needs, she won't bloom.  It's a fine line and I will just have to pray for guidance and wisdom  from the Master of the Universe.  (and wear my seatbelt!)

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Posted by MelM

My friend Nancy pointed me to your blog and I am so thankful that she did! Just last night I used my usual analogy for my girls...the sponge and the tornado. The sponge (9 this November) is calm, quiet, and will soak up anything I teach her...but when I squeeze it back out, most of it is gone again. Very little is retained, despite her attempts to please me by gushing it back out in a torrent. My tornado (4 this past April) whirls through through my life, touching down here and there and picking up who knows what, who knows when...but when she feels the time is right she spits it back out...and that left in the eye of her maelstrom is amazingly left in pristine condition. But getting her to perform on command, answer upon request, or soak up anything? Not a chance. :-P I, too, will have to sit down and flip through my garden books and decide what flowers they are and what I can learn from the way you've presented this...LOVE IT!

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Posted by mijubrifarms

Thanks for the kind words and encouragement

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Posted by lazearbeam

get their driver's licenses until they were 18. I had read an article in Reader's Digest years ago that convinced me that states ought to raise the age to 18 because of the statistics on younger drivers. We lived in a highly populated area and one with a lot of traffic accidents. I just stuck to my guns about it and am glad that I did. The story you posted just reinforced it for me. That is an awful thing to have to live with for that young man. It will take a while for him to overcome that in his life, I am sure. There is no wonderful thing about driving as soon as everybody else does. Young people just have that idea that they are invincible and waiting until maybe they have learned even just a teeny bit that they aren't is a wise thing to do. I don't know if that helps you or not, but wanted to share that there are some of us out here that wait.

Love and shalom,
Serena

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