Road trips a passage to adulthood

Road trips are wonderful things. Of course, road trips in our family have traditionally included at least one of the parents.

Last week, one of the girls took her first road trip alone. Nervous was an emotion that I thought I had fully experienced until the morning she drove away without me.

What if she broke down?

What if she had a flat tire?

What if she got lost?

What if ... what if?

Technology is a wonderful thing, and the amazing GPS systems sold everywhere now helped to ease my concerns about her getting lost. The one she has even rerouted when she took the wrong exit.

I gave her the lecture about stopping for gas first. I gave her every piece of advice I could give her, and then I just let her go.

She headed for Oak Island and then to Myrtle Beach, S.C., so she could spend the weekend with a friend she met last summer.

He is a guy, and I didn't even care about her leaving to spend a weekend with a guy as much as I cared about the getting there part.

Road trips are fun though, and they really are a right of passage in many ways. There is something that just smacks of independence about getting in a car and just driving.

She had her car all set up with her play list of road trip songs ready for the three-hour ride.

She had her phone set up where she could answer hands free if necessary.

She had her map in and ready with the GPS.

And, she had her black fedora hat strategically placed on her head, which completed her road trip attire.

For two hours and 45 minutes, I tried everything humanly possible not to think. I helped my niece and nephew roll what seemed like a million pennies.

Every 20 minutes I'd check the clock on the wall and then the one on my watch just to be sure. I'd open my cell phone and check to make sure I hadn't missed any calls.

The phone finally rang, and she had made it through taking the wrong exits, road construction and pit stops all the way to Oak Island, and now she was standing in the yard unable to find the front door to the house.

I couldn't help but laugh as her little voice said "Mom I'm serious. I cannot find the front door."

No GPS could help with that.

Once I knew she was there and safe, then I started to worry about the whole spending the weekend with a guy thing. Yes, the parents were there. No, they are not a "couple," and yes, I had to threaten to drive up for dinner to get her to check in at night.

Poor thing was surrounded by people who love music as much as she does all weekend, and they cooked for her and waited on her hand and foot.

One night she called and three young men had cooked dinner for her, poor thing. She was enjoying this whole road trip thing a little too much.

It's just bizarre how life happens. I can still see her sitting safely buckled in her car seat behind me like it was yesterday. I'd glance in the mirror and laugh as we sang silly songs on our road trips. She always had ridiculously large sunglasses and made faces back at me.

Now she's driving off alone to sing with some boy - who we all know isn't a boy at all!!!

Let's face it. You can't call an 18-year-old with a nearly full beard a boy. What was I thinking?

I was thinking that she's grown into a pretty amazing young lady with a really good head on her shoulders.

And, if all else fails, her daddy has a really big gun and a really fast truck.

Just kidding of course.

Kim Smith is a member of the Craven County Board of Education and the mother of two daughters.