I have passed my thirtieth birthday and I don’t yet have my driver’s licence. With a few changes I have finally managed, with much help and support, to get into a path that will make me a licensed driver in the not too distant future. The prospect makes me reflect on the difficulties of not having a licence and the benefits that await me.
Being a non-driver is limiting in many ways. It can make a small task difficult, weather prohibitive and a friendship feel unequal. If I had had my licence at sixteen I might play the cello today, but then I might have run away and be lost today.
When I think of life beyond the successful driving test I see possibilities open up. I will be able to choose a city based on preference rather than facility of public or bicycle transport, to apply for jobs up and over hills or far away, to look for an affordable house rather than one convenient for work and supermarkets.
Sometimes one change, even a small one, can change the direction of our lives, open up options and brighten our present by brightening our future.
Katherine Wansink Writes 