Backseat

My oldest daughter passed her Pennsylvania driving test today, and now that we’ve officially added her to our insurance, she’s already left for the first time on her own to pick up something at Home Depot or Lowes of all places. Before this, she drove with her sister in the passenger seat as I sat quietly in the back. I barely coached her; that time has passed. Now, I would pipe up in case of emergency.

This transition to the “backseat” of parenting–and of living in general–as I age marks something important in life. We slip back to let others drive. We’re the wisdom givers, the intercessors, and the encouragers. We’re the safety net and the silent rock that stays sturdy behind others as they move into adulthood and into greater influence in the world.

We move from the front to the back, and it’s just as it should be.

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