A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Road Test…

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I don’t know about you, but when I took the road test, there was a place for parents to sit, have a cup of coffee and chat with other parents.

Today, I took my daughter to some undisclosed place in Wantagh to take her road test. She had been to this place a few times before with her father, but I didn’t know what to expect. When we got to the set destination, there was a line of cars.

“We need to get in line,” my daughter told me.

Her appointment was at 9 am. We got there about 10 minutes early and waited. We waited and waited and waited. Slowly cars moved up the line. We watched as the potential drivers pulled away and we watched them pull back to the curb. Some cried when they got out and others cheered. They were all about the same age, probably about 17 like my daughter.

As we sat in the car, my daughter talked about her nervousness.

“Just relax,” I said. “I know you’ll do perfect this time.”

“Where do the parents go?” I asked my daughter, changing the subject.

“Ummm…” she said. “You just stand outside and wait.”

“What?” I shouted. “Your kidding right?” And I’m thinking this is very nervy! Here we all took a half day of work, at least provide us with restroom facilities and a nice hot cup of coffee!

When it was our turn, I exited the car and an African American woman with a huge clip board stepped in my place. They were off. I crossed the street and stood with the other parents. It was cold — very cold. I tried jumping up and down to warm up. It didn’t work. I tried making small talk with the other parents. That didn’t work either. The other parent’s children came back. Both were crying — they failed.

My daughter speed up and stopped the car abruptly. I looked at her. I looked at the woman. She was writing up something.

“So how did she do?” I asked.

“She did fine,” she told me.

“Did she pass?”

“Yes.”

“Can I give you a hug and kiss?” I asked the woman. She nodded her head. I gave her a hug and kiss, got into the car and my daughter drove away… We stopped at the next block, cheered and gave each other high fives!