So today I'm helping my daughter look for her first car. This is sort of a difficult experience on one hand, but a good one on the other. The difficult part comes in remembering those times when she was younger playing Forza Motorsport on the PS3, and I would watch her driving her Lamborghini at breakneck speeds, rounding corners with a look of maniacal glee that would have made her look like a racer at a NASCAR event that had just gotten out on a three day pass. I see her getting behind the wheel of her new car and then it's like the outside world just begins to fly by, like that Speed Tunnel at Disneyland you would go through during the People Mover ride, and I start to sweat. Tough imagery for Dads. On the other hand, I know how bad she wants a car. She's a young woman now, who is starting to take her first tentative steps at life and being a grown-up, and desiring the freedom that comes with it. I want that for her as well. I want to be sure the car she drives is as safe and secure for her as possible, and truth be told, she's a very safe driver. I know how much getting it will mean to her, and as parents we try to make our kids happy. I think getting a car will teach her responsibility, among other things. Owning a car is a big deal, and there are things you need to be take care of if you want that car to last. We all have stories of cars in our lives that have died on us in the strangest of ways. My wife and I once drove home from Palm Springs in a car that was spraying parts all over the highway as we were driving. "There goes another one!" I'd say as I looked out the rear view mirror just in time to see a piece of engine bounce down the highway. My daughter understands that being a responsible car owner means making sure you never put yourself in that position, and I know that she'll take good care of her car. It's funny, I remember clearly my daughter's very first car ride when we brought her home from the hospital. I've never been so scared to drive in all my life, but I made it home, let out a big sigh of relief, held her close and fell in love. We've almost come full circle now, only this time it will be her turn to give Dad a ride in her new car. I hope she's not as nervous as I was. Somehow I don't think she will be.
"...roll down the window and let the wind roll back your hair
well the nights bustin' open
these two lanes will take us anywhere...'
Bruce Springsteen - Thunder Road
