It's amazing how you go through life every day not really putting any thought into your day, just doing one thing right after the other.

I had been married three months prior. I decided one day that my girlfriend and I should keep my husband's car every once in awhile. This way we would have transportation to go places during the day and find fun things to do.

When Mike came in from work, I casually asked him, Hon, “Do you mind letting me keep the car now and then so Martha and I can do some shopping?”

He quickly replied, “Of course you can, I should have thought of that myself. One of the guys at work drives straight past here everyday. I can have him pick me up.”

It was all I could to to keep from doing a happy dance, I thanked him and ran for the phone to call Martha. I wanted her to know that we would be able to have some fun now.

Her first response was, “Cheryl, do you know how to drive?”

“No,” I replied, “I really don't think there's a lot to it. I have watched Mike and it seems easy to me. We will learn together and just think of the fun we will have, going to lunch, even out to the skating rink.”

Just a couple of days later Mike told me that he had asked his friend to pick him up and that I could keep the car.

As soon as he left for work, I called Martha. “Today is the day,” I informed her, “I have the car so come on over.”

A couple hours later she and I are sitting in the car and I am going through the gear shifts. As I shifted through the gear pattern, I would name the gears, up for first gear, down to second gear, up and over to third gear. After doing this for at least a half a dozen times, I decided we were ready to go.

I turn the car on, put it in gear and started down the driveway. I was so excited I could hardly believe it, I had made it all the way to the corner and hadn't stalled it out.

Sitting there, watching the traffic, I realized I was attempting to turn onto one of the busiest streets in Little Rock. Broadway was a main street through our town and you can only imagine how much traffic at any given time is on it. I put the signal on and made my turn. Poor Martha is sitting over there frozen, even too scared to talk. I was just starting to feeling real comfortable with my driving when I looked up and realized I had a city policeman on my bumper.

“Martha, the cops are right behind me, what should I do?”

“Put your right turn signal on and let's see if he follows you,” she whispered, as if he could hear her.

I did as she suggested and made the right at the corner. Much to my relief the policeman went straight ahead.

Not only did Martha decide that I was a pretty good driver and was finally enjoying our outing but that we ought to do this more often. The next couple months found us driving at least once a week.

Of course all good things must come to an end. When things are going well, we all know it is going to happen, the proverbial other shoe falling. I had driven to the Safeway Food Store to buy my usual week of junk food. As I pulled in I realized I was going up the aisle that I should have been driving down, so I decided to just back into the parking space. Since it was a new experience for me, I didn't know how to gauge the length of our 57 Ford Galaxy I backed into the wall and broke the tail light.

Everything in the world ran through my mind all at once. Did I have to tell the store I hit their wall even though there was no damage to it? Would I get a ticket for having a wreck, especially since I had no license to drive? I couldn't even imagine what I was going to tell my husband. It seemed to me that I had committed a terrible mistake and all a sudden I was feeling every bit the 15-year-old child that I was. I had no clue what to expect of him. To say I was scared would be putting it mildly.

That afternoon, when Mike returned from work, he came into the kitchen and asked me how my day went.

“All right I guess,” I replied, “I didn't do a whole lot.”

Michael knew that I would not lie to him. He gave me that look that let me know he was being serious when he asked, “What happened to the car?”

I tried hard to look innocent as I said, “Did something happen to the car?”

“It has a busted tail light Cheryl, you didn't realize that?'

“You mean someone drove through the alley and hit it?”

Mike is trying his best not to laugh as he says, “I don't think that's what happened, there is no glass. So my guess is that you must have done it.”

They say confession is good for the soul. I sure didn't feel that way at that moment. “Yes, I did, I went to Safeway store and went the wrong way up the aisle. I decided to back in, I didn't judge it very well, so now we have a busted tail light. Are you mad at me?”

“No, I'm not mad, just wondering why you didn't tell me instead of playing this game.”

“I was sure you were going to be furious. After all it was a stupid mistake and I thought maybe you would tell me I couldn't drive anymore,” I answered, with tears rolling down my face.

“Honey, it's just a taillight, not like you had a wreck or worse, ran over someone. Please quit crying, I'll get it fixed this weekend.

Time seem to just fly by, and the first thing I knew we had been married for a year and a half. Our lives had changed quite a bit. We had a son by that time, and President Kennedy had called Mike to active duty. It was to be for only eight months during the Berlin crisis.

While he went to his new duty station and got all squared away, I stayed with his mother in New Orleans. It seemed like the most practical thing to do as we had no idea if Mike would be going overseas.

A few months later, practical or not, I knew I could stand my in-laws no longer. I blew up one evening and called my hubby and told him to come get me. My mother-in-law was really upset with me but I was very headstrong and had made up my mind. The only options I gave Mike on Thursday night was to come get me by the weekend or I would go back to Arkansas. Then there would be no need for him to come for me.

We may not have been together all that long, but my husband knew I meant every word of it, so he asked a friend (that lived in New Orleans) to help him drive home so he could get his wife and son. They drove all Friday night arriving Saturday morning.

By the time he got to the house my poor husband looked like something the dog had dragged up. He went straight to the shower and to bed. I had already packed the baby's stuff and mine, so I carried it all out to the car and arranged everything so we could make the trip back that night. Michael had to be at work Sunday morning at six.

We were finally on our way to Fort Rucker, Alabama. I was driving as both men were completely exhausted.

The only good thing about the whole trip was that the baby slept like a angel.

I had been driving for about three hours. It was pouring rain, as black as it could be outside. All a sudden I can see all the red lights in the world up in front of me. What a time to actually realize I had never got a driver's license. I'm trying my best to wake up Michael and still keep the car steady. I am completely terrified not knowing what's going to happen when I arrived at what seemed to be a roadblock.

“Mike, wake up for God's sake, there's a roadblock up ahead of us. What should I do?” I was almost begging him at this point, to wake up and answer me.

Finally he looked up and calmly said, “It's most likely a wreck, just drive slowly up to it and they will wave you through.”

“What if it is a roadblock, what do I do then?” I cried.

“Cheryl Ann, at that point, you hand them your driver's license and insurance papers. They look at them and then let you go on,” he wearily said.

“Exactly where am I supposed to get these driver's license? I don't have one.”

“What do you mean you don't have one? Almost two years you've been driving with no license?”

“Well, let's just back this cart up. If you'll recall, I was only fifteen when you married me. Too young for a driver's license. Since that time, I have given you a son, moved away from my home and lived with your mother. Just when was I supposed to be getting this license?” I screamed at him.

“Okay, just clam down, it will be alright. It is too late at this point, to switch drivers, they can see us already. When you get up there if they stop you, I will explain the situation to them.”

I sarcastically said, “This ought to be really good, are you going to tell them that I hijacked you, I made you let me drive in a rain storm? They're not going to believe you no matter what you say.”

Michael looked at me and said as patiently as he could, “At this point honey, we go with the flow. If they give you a ticket then we'll take care of it, so just drive up and we'll see what happens.”

I cautiously drove in line with everyone else and approached the policeman. As soon as I could actually see him standing there, I could tell it was a wreck and he was just waving people through. I am sure that only the good Lord above knew how relieved I was. I have always had a terrible fear of being locked up. I am claustrophobic and spent a lot of my young years in a closet as a choice of punishment by my step father.

On Monday morning Michael had to get up bright and early to go into the post, as he was my soldier boy now, minus one friend I was sure after that trip.

As he went to kiss me goodbye, he looked me straight in the eyes and said, “I will stop by DMV this afternoon and get the book for you to study. You will not be driving until you get a license.”

True to his word he came home with all the needed paperwork and books for me to study. I spent the next day doing just that, grateful for the fact that I had a photographic memory. It took no time for me to finish the books.

Tuesday afternoon when he came home I asked, “When can I take my driver's test?”

“You better study some more,” he said, “Because if you fail it you can't take it again for a month.”

“I won't fail it, I am ready and anxious to get it over with so I can drive. With the new baby, Michael, it's important that I be able to get around.”

“I'll take you down on Saturday, just be sure you're ready, It really won't hurt to just study a little more.”

“Okay, I'll be ready on Saturday, just don't forget.”

What my darling husband hadn't bothered to tell me, Friday was a training holiday for the Army and he had the day off. After finishing breakfast, he told me that he had been looking at another car and wanted me to go see it. I was thrilled just being out of the house. I didn't like having the feelings my wings had been clipped since I wasn't allowed to drive.

So off to the Ford dealer we went and imagine my surprise when I found out the car had been bought already and all we had to do was sign the papers. I guess I should clarify that just a little bit, he had to sign the papers. It would be years before I realized that I could have my name on the title also.

The big day had arrived, it was Saturday and I was going for my driver's test. I zoomed through the written part and was ready for the driving. The instructor was a very nice middle-aged man. He had me drive around a couple blocks and had me pull up to a stop sign that was on a hill. I stopped and was trying hard to keep my foot on the brake and give the car some gas where I would not roll backwards. (our 57 Ford was a straight shift and would rollback on a hill).

The instructor smiled as he said, “This is a automatic and it won't roll.”

I explained to him that I was sorry that we had just bought the car yesterday and I hadn't learn all the new advantages as yet.

“That's okay, you're doing great, now I would like for you to parallel park in that spot just in front of us.”

I know without a doubt that my eyes were as big as saucers as I had tried many times to parallel park and just never accomplished it.

I looked over at the instructor and asked him, “Can you just mark that wrong please, I can't parallel park?”

He smiled, “No I can't, so just do your best.”

With a big sigh, I started backing up. In my lifetime I know for a fact that the good Lord above has handled quite a few things for me and I am here to tell you this was one of them. I put that Ford Falcon station wagon in that space like it was made for it. I looked at this nice man sitting beside me and I said, “Thank you Lord.”

The instructor, with a very large smile on his face, inform me that I had done a wonderful job and I now had a license to drive.

That was 53 years ago, I am still driving, have passed every test, even drove a 18 wheeler for six years, I truly love to drive. 

I still can't criticize anyone's driving. My husband loves to remind me and the world that his wife likes to back into buildings that are standing perfectly still.