Dear David,
You probably aren’t aware of this yet. It may hit you tomorrow, or later in the week, but your life is about to change – BIG TIME.
You’ve been driving Brady and Eva to school for years. You stopped driving Brady when he got his own car. Eva’s driving days are beginning Tuesday as she turns sixteen. That change will bring your driving to school days to an end. It’s a blessing and a curse.
When you, Elizabeth and Michael were in school, I too, drove you for several years. In the beginning I dropped Elizabeth and Michael off at daycare. Your mom drove to Adrian each morning, so it was just easier for me to take on those responsibilities. We were all going to Addison.
You never went to daycare because your mom was home with you. She didn’t return to work until you were in school, and in the beginning, she worked just part time. I learned several years later that Elizabeth and Michael didn’t like daycare. Especially Elizabeth.
Among my fondest memories are the discussions we had on our way. Sometimes we’d review spelling words or math problems. I’d ask the questions and you guys provided the answers. Being the oldest, you knew it all. When we weren’t solving problems, we were singing songs or playing a quick round of I-Spy.
As the years passed, the discussions grew livelier. More than once you accused me of asking “easy” questions to Michael, while you and Elizabeth got the hard ones. You failed to take into account the age gap.
Sometimes, not often, but sometimes, we’d stop for breakfast at one of the mom-and-pop restaurants along the way. Pancakes was everyone’s favorite. On your birthdays, I’d take just one of you while the others rode the bus. Again, not every year, but some years.
I still remember the one time we ran out of gas on Waldron Road. I shouldn’t have taken the back way that day. More people would have been available to help us if I had taken US 12 to 127. Luckily, a fellow father came along. He had a gallon of gas with him, and he gave it to us. That blue Suburban drank a lot of gas, but if it could talk, it would have a ton of stories to share.
Those drives are among my favorite memories. They ended when the middle school principalship was added to my duties. I had to leave earlier, and Emil came over to get you guys on the bus. You were all in school by then.
So today, in between working in the yard and watching football, think about all the times you drove Brady and Eva to school. The moments you shared, the laughs you had, and the worries you helped calm. When Eva starts driving herself, you won’t have those opportunities anymore.
One more piece of advice. Leave a bit early tomorrow so the two of you can stop for pancakes.
Love,
Dad
