Passing on the torch

Last week, I dropped by my sister’s house to say hi. I haven’t dropped by her house for a while, and besides saying hi and playing with the dogs, I usually forage through her kitchen to see what’s there. Usually she bakes cookies and leaves them on the kitchen counter. It’s nice to have a sister who knows how to cook and keeps her ref and cookie jars stocked up. It’s easier for me to make sure none of those goes to waste. And if I am lucky enough, I get a chance to take some home with me. The things you have to do for family…

Anyway, while I was there I found out that my brother-in-law has been teaching my niece how to drive. And she has been around the village a couple of times. I kind of realized that this was not the baby girl I used to put to take care of. This is a teenager very excited to learn how to drive. Wow! I must have blinked a couple of times and missed something. Since it was a Sunday, she asked her dad if he would allow her to drive around the village. Her dad said yes, “but let your Uncle King Kong go with you.” Pause…. a decade ago if I she was left with me, I would be tasked to take care of her, feed her, give her a bath, change her diaper, put her to sleep… all those baby sitting things that you are supposed to do. Now it’s teaching her how to drive. Note to self: yes David, they don’t stay babies forever. They also grow up. That means you’re also getting older. In fairness to my niece, we got back to the house without scratching her dad’s car. Although I would prefer she learn how to drive a manual and a van. For me, if you could learn how to maneuver a van and parallel park it, you can drive any car.