THE EXPERIENCE

A girl failed her test today - My instructor told after giving me the same excuse of how and why he was late which was becoming rather usual nowadays. How? I asked sitting in the driver's seat and preparing to move off. What happened? Well, she was told to perform a reverse turn around the corner and she hit the curb…twice. If you hit it once you might be pardoned but twice is unforgivable. I became nervous. I had been driving for almost fifteen years and one and the half years in the UK particularly but that was not self convincing enough. Do you think I'm ready? I asked. Yeah…you'll do fine. We just need to practice your manoeuvres more. Your parallel parking is your trump card so we don’t need to really practice it but we could practice a turn in the road and around the corner if its ok with you. "Perfect." I replied. Ok, good. Move when you are ready…

It's Olamide right? he asked. Yes sir I replied….. This does not usually take more than 30 mins he beamed - This was my driving test instructor speaking with me on the bright morning of my test. He was a chubby man with a wide friendly grin on his face. Chei!, so this is the man that would determine my fate this morning. So what would you like me to call you? "Ola". I replied. This was much easier for the Scottish man to pronounce as it sounded like hello in Spanish (Hola). "I would like my instructor to be in the car during the test…he's my trump card." I said trying to act enthused. "No problem", he replied. "Can we go to the car?". We all walked to the car. The instructor stood in front of the car and asked me rather unexpectedly, "Can you tell me what you need to check on the tyres of a car before you move off?". This was an easy one. "You make sure there are no tears or bumps on its side and also make sure that the thread depth is no less than 1.6 in the central ¾ of the tyre." I said in a rather gregarious manner hoping he would not ask me, "1.6 what?", because I truly had no idea!. He nodded his head and signalled I enter the driver side. "I don’t bite", he said probably noticing how tremulous I was. I tried to smile and adjusted the seat to fit me… as if it was my first time in the car, even though I had driven the car to the center earlier. "Move off when you are ready", he said. I silently hoped this was the last time I was going to hear that command…

The drive was going rather smoothly, or at least I had hoped. He seemed to tick his paper a couple of times but I wasn’t sure if it was a score or minus. I just kept driving. "Stop a few car lengths behind that car", he instructed. I did as I was told. "We are now going to perform the parallel parking manoeuvre". It was a bittersweet moment. It was my practice driving strength, but I had messed up a bit when I had practiced it that same morning. I started moving, I did the first step…success. I did the second step…chei! I hit the curb. My heart skipped four beats. I moved forward and attempted it again. I hit the curb the second time. I was demoralized. I never imagined this could happen to me – with all my “oft touted” experience. At the third attempt, I managed not to hit the curb but I was sure I had failed the test. He ticked his paper and told me to move off when I was ready. I did but in a nonchalant manner. He noticed this and started asking me about my work. I babbled a few words. He then informed me we were to perform another manoeuvre. I might still have hope, I thought. I managed to do without any glitches. "Take the next left" he said. I did and noticed he was leading me back to the test center. We had been driving for over 40 minutes and I was getting tired. I automatically assumed I knew the way he wanted me to go. "We are going to remain on this dual carriage way for a while after which we would exit in just over half a mile he said. Now, I had a major problem, measurements are not exactly my strongest attributes as you might have noticed earlier and I had no idea how far a yard was not to talk of a mile. I saw broken lines on the road shortly which might also have indicated an exit and went for it. It was too late. I noticed it was a slip lane and quickly swerved back onto the dual carriageway. He glanced at my instructor who had been sitting quietly in the back, and then the side mirrors. When we got to the center, he said don’t bother about parking curbside, just stop the car …. I was visibly shaken. Would you like me to tell you the outcome of your test with your instructor present or would you like him to excuse us? Of course, al already knew the outcome, I thought. ‘Nah, its ok’. I replied. ‘Well, on this occasion sir, you have failed to pass your test’. Really ??!!! No!! He then went a step further and asked why do you think you failed the test? Well, I hit the curb oh that ?!, he interrupted. I didn’t fail you for that. I just gave you a minor fault. I was stunned!! I couldn’t think of any other time he could have failed me. So where did I fail? I asked. When you went into the slip lane, he replied. I was further amazed. You mean I had passed the test till just about five minutes ago? Yep, he said. In fact, you had just five minor faults. I needed fifteen to fail the test. I wanted to cry. I needed to cry…. I was deeply hurt. I thought of all the money and time I had spent on lessons and it all went down the drain all because I had given up too early thinking I had already failed…. Well, I guess your instructor will explain the rest to you.
He was rather nice to you, my instructor said. I knew… I didn’t need to be told that but didn’t realize to what extent …... I would soon find out… "Do you know there was a time he said turn left. You indicated for a right turn , moved into the right lane and went right …. Oh, that’s why he told me to keep going …. I wondered why he did that. He also told you to turn left. You indicated left, looked left and turned right!!!! I was amazed. Did I do that? (Urkel imitation) I said. Yep! He replied. I have seen you drive better, what happened? I don’t know I said. I know, he replies. I looked at him. You were not listening to your examiner he said. was, I replied defiantly. No you weren't, you could hear him but you were not listening…


THE REVELATION

Now, when anything goes wrong with me, even if it is my fault, I always try to console myself that God wanted my attention. That he was speaking with me…to me through the process or experience. Something kept prompting me to give thanks to God for the experience even though I failed the test, which I did, but I just could fathom why he wont just let me pass it. After all, He was God and He was my God and He could make anything possible. It was in His power. If you are a discerning reader, you would have picked out all the messages God sent to me through that simple test but I don’t blame you if you don’t because it took me, that it happened to, almost 3 weeks to finally get the message or revelation…in a shower!

The words…"you could hear him but you were not listening" kept replaying in my mind and the whole process played out in my mind and BAM! The jigsaw puzzle fitted! Everything fell into place. The previous girl was someone that had tried to live the “Christian” way and had failed at it. My instructor was Holy Spirit and the test instructor was God. The car represented life or the process of going through life and the mistakes made were sins.
The whole play out made me appreciate God more cause it taught me a lot of lessons. First of all, if God says go left and you turn right because you think you heard to turn to turn right or more realistically, you assume He wanted you to turn right, he still leads you on till He gets you back on the right track. Secondly, if you do not listen to God well enough, a lesson that should take 30 minutes might take 50 minutes gulp…Replace that with years…. it took my mind back to the Israelites who kept wandering in the desert forty years for a forty day journey… Thirdly, what we focus on as our greatest weaknesses might be considered ‘minor faults’, as long as we truly are sorry for them, keep listening and not give up just 5 minutes away from the “Promised Land” And finally, even though we fail Him, He sometimes always gives us a second, a third, a fourth chance ….. till you ‘get’ it

These lessons were far more precious than not getting a UK driver’s license at this time and believe me… the next time, I WILL listen…..


Olamide