Adventures in Fatherhood Part II.
The middle daughter, home from the first year of college, took off at 5:30pm for Colorado to train as a summer camp worker. One other girl rode with her and a couple followed in another vehicle. They drove as far as Tucumceri, NM, before stopping at a motel. At 1:30 a.m. Today they push on to Durango, CO. The Road Trip must be the second worst bane for fathers after car dating. This child that you have nurtured from infancy gets behind the wheel of the car and drives off into the madness of the world, careening down the highway, in the dark, for hours on end. Yes, I know I did it then, also. That doesn't help. I couldn't quit thinking about coming home one Sunday night from a Baptist Student Union Retreat. We were driving from a retreat center on Lake Travis, outside of Austin, to College Station. The minister had promised to release us at 10pm Sunday night so we could get back safely and at a reasonable hour to get some sleep. Of course, he didn't. (The truthfulness of ministers is another topic.) We left after midnight. My three passengers promptly fell asleep. The road was dark and there was no moon. It was soooo hard to stay awake. Several times my eyes closed and I jumped in fear of falling asleep. So, I tried watching t.v. to take my mind off of it. No sale. I tried reading. No sale. Finally, the Baby came in and asked me to take her to the store for some spiral notebooks. I jumped at the chance. All that said, one of the big lessons you must learn is to release your child to the Lord as they grow up. You just cannot protect them from life. So, I went off to bed, closed my eyes and said she's in your hands, keep her where I cannot. Peace came, and sleep. Thank you God. (The next project is the Baby's choir trip to Boston this summer.)