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Need More Days
When Aunt Alvie learned to drive
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It was a wild morning around Needmore the day Aunt Alvie was to take her drivers license test. Uncle Gordon felt she needed to take a test drive before she actually went to try for her license.
Most people learn to drive now before they ever finish high school.
In years gone by, most families didn't own a car until they were well into their adult years, often in their forties or fifties. Some didn't learn to drive until they were sixty or more. 
In fact, my parents bought their first automobile in 1955, a 1952 Ford Pickup truck, when they were both near fifty.  It wasn't a very old truck when they bought it, but it soon looked old. That truck soon had more different colors of paint on it than an artist's palette. They had few wrecks but seemed to bump everything in sight.
All automobiles back then had manual shifts and clutches, which complicated the problem of learning to drive.  Needless to say, there were some jumping good times around many farmyards.
Uncle Gordon had learned to drive first and had mastered the arts of gear changing, clutch pushing, curve turning, and backing up.  Well, at least he had gotten about as good at it as he was ever going to get. 
Many people never really became good drivers back then.  It fell his lot to teach Aunt Alvie the finer points of driving their green 1950  Chevrolet pickup truck.  
They had a son who was a better driver, but he was weak on nerve and refused to ride with her driving.
Aunt Alvie had made some progress; there was no doubt about that. Although she had bumped two trees, the corner of the smoke house, a hay rake in the yard, and had run over the old rooster, nothing bad had happened in the past week.
It was the third Thursday and Aunt Alvie was determined to take her drivers test in town.  Uncle Gordon bravely slammed the door on the passenger side and prepared for a trip around Needmore before they left for the big test.
Needmore was accustomed to such events. It was almost a weekly occurrence for someone to come out for their first drive on the public highway.  The local law enforcement officers turned their heads and prayed, like everyone else.  People kept their kids from walking on the road if they knew a new driver was testing. Even the adult walkers were very wary.  Since people knew Aunt Alvie, there was great apprehension in the air that fine Thursday morning.
Out of their lane and down on the big road she came, with Uncle Gordon gesturing and waving wildly.  He seemed to be hollering something, but we couldn't hear for the noise the truck made.  Gravels flew high in the air when she popped the clutch and pushed the gas to the floor.  It seems in the excitement she forgot which was the brake and which was the gas pedal.   She was trying to stop but the harder she pushed that brake, the faster they were going.   
Poog Hall was out that morning, although we never understood why.  She ran him in the ditch, and he seemed extremely glad to make it there. 
Uncle Artford Mayberry had his trunk full of foxhounds and she barely missed him. He said later it could have killed every hound he owned.
Pete Peterman ran in off his store porch, although it was a high porch and he probably wasn't in that much danger. 
Silas Crabtree saw her coming and cut off down a side road.    
Uncle Gordon finally got his foot on the brake and got her stopped before any serious damage was done.
Needless to say, her drivers test went well and she passed with flying colors.  The highway patrolman didn't even ask her to do the driving part of the test. Some said he didn't have the nerve to ride with her, although I figured he had ridden with some of the other neighborhood women, who were no better drivers than she was. 
All is well that ends well, I guess.
God is our instructor.  He teaches us how to navigate the curves and dangers of life.  If He refused to ride with us, our lives would surely soon end in awful wrecks.