Driving

At the age of 14 I guess, we had a small car and we used to call it tarak-tarak. It was perhaps because the color was yellow, it was very small, the design was unusual like I have never ever seen a car such as that; not even now that it's gone already. Unique as it was, that was the first car I was able to ran. Well, making the car run was easy and having it stop was much easier (that it fully stopped and turned off..hahahah). But, how I wish driving is as easy as that (I was driving in a very open field then).

Last year, I had to master driving because riding a taxi was and is very expensive. We had to hire a taxi or borrow a multicab driver to bring mama to the hospital or the stroke rehabilitation clinic more than twice a week. It was very expensive of course. It was either we minimize going to the clinic or I drive the multicab for us. The first choice was feasible so we did it and I enrolled at driving school so to master the technicalities and principles of driving. After 5 days, I was able to drive busy streets, although I still struggled with uphill driving. I hated it when motorela and other PUV drivers would suddenly stop while driving uphill just to load or unload passengers; some doesn't even have tail lights, back lights, and signal lights. tsk tsk tsk..

However, mama and papang pushed me to find a work so my degree wouldn't be wasted, besides I am not getting any younger and I definitely need one for my future's sake (esp. that I'm getting married). Actually, they pitied on me because I cut my VSO opportnity just to attend to mama. It was actually ok with me. hehehe..I was confident that God will give me a job whenever I need one. He did! When mama and papang told me to find a job, I got opportunities right away. God is gracious, indeed, and worthy of all praises!

So, this work thing, defeated the purpose of cutting the taxi expenses or driving mama to the clinic. Anyhow, God provided us din naman with all our needs. He met even our wants. I did save from daily travel expenses. Aside from the fact that my BA sends and fetches me to and from school everyday, I drive my way, too, when he couldn't make it and I drive the multicab when I love doing it.

Every driving moment was and is an experience. Every time I drive I learn new techniques and new ways and I enjoy it a lot. Every time I drive, I learn to communicate better with other drivers, I learn to read between the traffics, and I learn more about timing and proper orchestration of my feet, my hands, my ears, my eyes, among other senses. Certainly, I grow as a person because along the way, I learned a lot in as much as I realized so many things; that driving is not just about learning how to make the car run or stop. Driving is reality. I need to determine right timing, right pacing, right motions, appropriate signal giving, decision making, responsible driving, among others. Traffics taught me to wait than rush, which I might get into much trouble. I have become more responsible as a pedestrian as well because I know now how it feels to be driving in streets where people are crowding themselves seemingly unconscious of the street they're at.

Now that I am already 27 years old, I am still riding a cute tarak-tarak (as it may appear beside extravagant and vintage cars). It may just be a multicab, but two things are certain, I am a better driver now and I have a better citizen now.