After an adventurous and tiresome trip everyone was
exhausted. They just wanted to hit the bed and have a whole night’s sleep. The
plan for next day too was a hectic one and had to start early. It was around 11
pm and everyone had completed their dinner. It was time to say good night. But
nah! Pansy, was feeling playful. She asked excitedly, “Are we not going for the
drive we planned?”
“Let’s go” prompted Troy, the one who considers any time
spent indoors as a waste of time. There was an uncertain look on the faces of Jane,
Tia and Pansy herself. The three girls glanced at each other. Pansy had not
anticipated this. She was sure Jane would object to it. It’s late in the night,
not advisable to be outdoors. But, surprisingly, there was a big “YES” in
unison from all of them. Within no time everyone was in the car with Troy in
the driving seat.
Zoooooom, the car started and was on the driveway, “Right or
left?” Troy popped the question. Before anyone could answer, the car headed
straight and then immediate left to an empty parking lot. The car came to an
abrupt halt! The girls were perplexed. It was supposed to be a drive, probably
a long drive but not as short as this one! Troy winked at Jane and asked to
come forward. There was an exchange of seats and Jane was in the driving seat
with Troy by her side. Jane wanted to practice driving but had not been able to
allocate some time due to her very hectic schedules. All of them were less than
a couple of years into the new country and Troy was the only one amongst the four
who had been able to clear the road test and get a driving license where as all
the others had only learner’s permit.
Troy briefed everyone about the control on steering,
accelerator and the brakes. Questions were poured about adjustment of seat to
accelerator control, gear shift etc. Being a passionate driver himself, Troy
answered all of them patiently. “Place the gear in drive mode and hit the
accelerator” commanded Troy. Jane was a little hesitant, but followed the
orders to the core. Slowly and steadily the vehicle moved ahead and was turning
at the corners. With little help from Troy, Jane was able to drive around the
parking lot pretty well. For almost more than half an hour Jane followed each
and every command of Troy and the car seemed to follow Troy’s instructions
rather than Jane’s driving. “Hit the brake and stop the car” ordered Troy.
There was an astonished look, “Why?” demanded Jane. “You have been doing a good
job! Let us give others a chance too” replied Troy. With a big smile on the
face, Jane parked the car and stepped out to swap with Pansy.
Pansy was not much interested in driving. She had least
expected to qualify for the written test. She believed it was sheer luck she
got the learner’s permit. As soon as she sat on the driver’s seat, “Adjust your
seat, put on your seat belt”, roared Troy. A tensed and agitated Pansy got more
tensed. She didn’t utter a word but followed as instructed. With so many
instructions from Troy to increase the speed, turn left, slow down, apply
brakes, drive ahead, control the steering, car going out of control, slow down,
slow down, slow down, Pansy was trying her best to keep following the
instructions but she was losing control on the car. While taking a turn, she
was about to hit the divider, that Troy had to lean forward to steer the other
way around. Pansy was losing her concentration which was easily visible to
everyone in the car. Troy was doing a
good job by controlling the steering whenever required. But the vehicle was
swaying in both the directions. For anyone watching the vehicle will get
suspicious and in no time had the cops siren heard nearby. Pansy froze and hit
the brake suddenly. She just wanted to get out of the car. But before she could
think, before she could react, the cops vehicle had come to a halt hardly 50
feet from them.
“Be cool and calm everyone, don’t panic” whispered Troy. “Do
not say anything more than what is asked” he continued. The cop came and spoke
in a cool and composed voice, “Hello there”. “Hi, Officer” replied Pansy. “May
I ask what is happening here?” enquired the person in the uniform. “Ya, officer.
I am practicing for my road test.” “Oh that is good, but why did you choose
this late in night?” shot the officer. “Since only during this time, the roads
and the parking areas will be vacant, we chose this time.” Replied Pansy
confidently. All through this conversation, Troy was just listening. Jane and Tia
were sitting quiet in the back seats. Suddenly the officer glanced through the
back, and asked “Who are you?”. “We are friends”. “You are so confident on her
driving that you volunteered to sit while she practiced?” “Yes” Tia
replied promptly. The officer walked
around the car, “be careful and try to avoid late night practice” suggested the
officer and drove away.
A big sigh of relief came across the faces of all 4 of them.
It took more than a couple of minutes for them to speak. Jane was the first one
to break the silence – “Do you want me to call the cops again so that you
resume your speaking?” A loud laugh reverberated. “Pansy was scared to hell”,
Troy exclaimed. “But she replied well. Officer didn’t have any more questions” said
Jane. “Troy was more scared than her” laughed Tia. “You became dumb when
officer was here”, retorted Troy. All through this conversation, Pansy still
seemed lost. Troy and Tia were busy arguing with each other. But Jane noticed
Pansy. She felt something was wrong. She tried calling and even shaking Pansy.
“Pansy, Pansy!!!!” Pansy came to senses and looked at everyone. Without a
second thought she jumped out of the car. Troy was confused. Pansy admitted she
was afraid and didn’t want to continue. Troy was not ready to let her go. He
tried to convince to give another attempt. But she was adamant.
She was feeling a lot
exhausted. He advised to give another try and enjoy driving. But Pansy
requested Tia to step out.
“Sit erect and try to see the front of the car” advised Troy.
“Why do we need to sit erect? I can see the front of the car, I don’t think it
is necessary for me to sit erect”, replied Tia. Troy had been enjoying
instructing Jane and Pansy. It didn’t seem difficult teaching them since they were
following each and every instruction without many questions. Now it was Tia’s
turn. Troy understood he is going to have a difficult time and will not be a
cake walk with Tia.
Soothing down his voice, he tried to explain the importance
of control on steering and other basics in driving. “Drive slowly and
steadily”, “Turn right”, “Slow down”, “Watch out for the pole”, shooted the
instructions one after the other. Although not fully acceptable by Tia, she was
following each one of them. “Hit the brake, hit the brake!” roared Troy. But Tia
didn’t slow down. “Why?” was her question. “Hit the brake!” ordered Troy again.
Boom, Tia stamped on the brake, and looked at Troy ferociously. Both Pansy and Jane
sitting in the rear seats swayed downwards. “Why do you want me to stop the
car? Am I not driving properly? Why don’t you allow me to drive? If I am making
any mistake, correct me. Why do you want me to stop the car?” retaliated Tia.
“Why can’t you just do what I am saying you to do? Why do you have so many
questions?” spat back Troy. “Entha dhairyam ra neeku (“How dare you talk like
that to me?”) echoed a Telugu movie dialogue from behind. Pansy and Jane looked
at each other. Voice was coming from Jane’s mobile. “Uthuthine akka” (“I was
just joking”, another movie dialogue) a male voice was pleading. Many a time, the
music play list starts automatically in Jane’s mobile and the stored audio
files start playing one by one. Recognizing the source of the voice, loud
laughter reverberated from the back of the car. But the temperatures were still
high in the front. Sensing danger Jane chipped in and tried to calm Tia down.
“Just drive as instructed. Since you have never been on road, he wants you to
get a grip on the vehicle, so that it is easier for you in the later stages of
your practice.” “Why can’t he just watch and correct me when I go wrong? argued
Tia again. Jane understood there was no
point arguing with her at this point; it is just going to worsen the situation.
Before she could think thru and explain anything to Tia, Troy said in a very
calm voice, “Drive through the parking lot to your hearts fill. Don’t be surprised.
I mean it. Drive to your heart’s fill.” Tia stared at Troy with astonishment.
“You are very much excited about the thought of driving a vehicle, that you are
not ready to listen to me or anyone else. Until your excitement levels are high,
you will not be able to listen to my instructions or learn to drive. So, just
drive” explained Troy. Tia tried to argue back but thought otherwise and
started driving carefully. In no time, she understood Troy was right, and she
had to be calm and composed and follow the instructions. She drove carefully
for the next two rounds as instructed and realized that a lot of patience and
practice is required to learn a new skill.
Since it was already past midnight, Jane suggested that it
was time to go home and relax. Troy drove them back. Everyone exchanged good
night and went to bed.
Lying on the bed, Pansy was thinking how stupid she had been
not listening to anyone and not giving another try. Had she been not scared,
even she would have driven a while and enjoyed it. In the adjacent room, Tia
was feeling furious. “Had Troy not played the part of being the “know it all”,
I could have shown how well I can drive. If not this time, next time I will definitely
show my driving skills”. With a determined smile, she fell asleep. Jane felt
contented about her driving practice. But all the more her interest to learn
and practice grew tenfold. What an awesome feeling it is to drive a car. And
Troy had been a very good teacher that day.
Meanwhile Troy was not at all sleepy. Rerunning all the
events of the driving session in his mind, he was feeling satisfied. He had
given similar sessions earlier, but this was different. This was fun. All of
them drove well. They need a little bit more of practice. It was easy
instructing Jane and Pansy. They were with an open mind. Open to take in whatever
is being told to them, With Tia, a different strategy needs to be followed. She
is excited, her learning way is different. Dealing with such type of people
requires more patience. But they are the ones who excel in whatever task they
take up. His mind wandered to different strategies to be employed and slowly
drifted to sound sleep.
<<Inspired from some real life incidents>>
