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| Thankfully, my car didn't look like this when I got home. :) (from wikipedia) |
I drove home from Dollar Tree today.
It was the first time I've been on the road, ever-- aside from jaunts about the neighborhood
It was just me and my mom, checking to see if they had balloons for my grandma's party on Saturday. "Why don't you drive home?" My mom said to me. "I don't know about that. I might get arrested or something," I said apprehensively. "No!" my mother said with a chuckle,"The worst you could get is a ticket." So I drove home. At about 40 miles an hour. And it wasn't scary, actually, I enjoyed it. I only got honked at once. :)
This beginning of this year, I turned eighteen and graduated from high school.
A few weeks ago, I registered to vote.
My sisters and I took a road trip to Bob Jone University for a competition-- first time out of state without our parents.
I got a debit card with actual money on it.
My sister and I are looking into starting a business-- not sure yet what it will be.
Said sister drives my other sister and me into town for my other sister's art class every week, and said sister and I go grocery shopping, all by ourselves (goodness, that was confusing!) and we drive every week to a choir we joined this year.
Not too long ago, I bought a new Bible online, all by myself. Oh, and did I mention I'm learning Hebrew all by myself, just because I want to?
These are growing-up milestones for me. I look back at all the things I thought only grownups did, and now I'm doing them myself! Including, actually, going to babysit at someone's house and unlocking their door by myself with a key they gave me. That seemed super grown up to me when I was young.
Though I am beginning to grow up, and doing grown up things, I still feel childish at times, and in no way what I felt like I would feel in my imagination. I imagined myself prettier, more confident and poised, being able to have a conversation without feeling awkward. But this is the way God is sanctifying me, and I trust His judgement. I remember a quote in Anne of the Island about by the time you were twenty your character was formed... I only have 2 more years, in that case, and much more work to do. But I'm doing my best to be diligent to be found by God without spot or blemish (2 Peter 3:14) and to work out my salvation with fear and trembling (with God's help of course). He has been so good to me so far! And I want to trust Him with the rest of my grown up life. I think it's a resolution that will last far beyond the New Year.
I will sing to the Lord,
because he has dealt bountifully with me.
Psalm 13:6
