
If God answered my prayer tonight, then my mum was my guardian Angel of the night. My dad was leaving for a trip tonight & days before I took up the challenge to drive the car back alone from the Airport. Having passed my licence this year, I still didn't drive enough to be familiar with the road, let alone driving at night (I only did it once). I took the test seriously & even took a bus to the Airport 3 days ago silently to be familiar with the night route. I studied the map again & again. I was confident I remember everything I needed to know. I was eager to complete this task & not failed my dad. As the time ticked nearer & nearer, I was excited & nervous. My older sister refused to go on the trip with me. Hence I braved myself to do this alone. We were to go on the trip after we had our dinner. I almost tripped myself over on my way to the dinning table saying something I couldn't remember. I blamed my shoes. Anyway, my mum decided to come along after our dinner. I was still teasing her that I would be even more nervous with her around. She could get excited & talked loudly & distracted me. No matter what, she insisted her way. Down in my heart, I didn't take her seriously & still think she could get me in trouble. There we go & dad even decided to orientate me with a bit of the road before U turning back to the Airport. Mum was still chatting away behind & asking some unrelated questions. I thought I remembered, thinking should anything failed, I could always rely on the road signs. And so we said our goodbyes at the departure drop off point after moving his luggage onto the trolley. I looked at him, & lost my Chinese train of words to wish him the best on the journey, I ended up completing my wishes in English. Filled with excitement, I calmly took over the steering wheel & not to worry my dad. Finally the test begun like a reality drama going ‘live' on TV. At least in my head & in my face. It wasn't easy to judge the distance of the cars by the rear mirror due to all the shinny headlights they were on. I drove with so much caution, mum ended up asking me to drive faster. I was shocked to see my speed at only 40km/hr. Ok speed up. I passed the budget terminals & remembered to keep to the extreme left to go to PIE expressway. 1 point passed. Next came to a ‘Y' section, I remember to drive on the right side, but wait I wasn't near enough to see the road sign. Left or right? Did I miss something? I decided to head towards the right side, but as I drove nearer, my mum announced it was wrong & I should head towards the left that will leads to another ‘Y' section to TPE. Thinking still in time, I turn my steering wheel to change route dangerously, only to meet a white car speeding behind me heading the left side honking me. Thank God, I managed to brake in time & was shocked to see it coming so close to where my mum was sitting. The driver managed to slow down in time & speed off showing his finger. Thank God, there weren't any vehicles behind us that would surely multiply the problem. Mum didn't see how close it was but she told me not to panic even heading the wrong way & I shouldn't do this again. She coolly said the most we get lost in the way & find our way out of the small Singapore. At that moment, I thought maybe mum can be a cool driver & laughed off any silly drivers she encountered & still get to the destinations. I seriously think I almost kill my mother tonight. My legs felt soft thinking of the whole episode. I felt guilty thinking she wouldn't be of any help even if she came on the trip with me. I felt sorry for the driver who I almost ran into. God knows who else was on board his car. I'm truly sorry. The rest of the trip came a lot easier from my memory & my study. We were finally heading home! I put my mum down & thinking quietly to myself, how long would it take me to park it in the middle between my neighbors' car. It didn't take me long as my mum stood by the grass at the side; continue to assist me whether I was coming close to any of the cars & whether it was safe to continue whatever I was doing. Wow she really didn't leave me behind. Finally I could call my dad to announce our safe arrivals. And I earned his "Well done" from another end of the phone. I didn't forget to give credits to my mum. She is truly my Angel of the night. (P/S: Never try this on the road. The writer continues her learning & hope she won't endanger another life in near future. Seriously.)
|