The night before my driving exam I was so stressed out, I didn’t sleep. I stared at the ceiling as panic and fear crawled into my mind. I had taken countless practice tests for the written portion and watched many of the “How to pass your road test on the first try” videos on Youtube. 

The next morning, I passed the eye exam and the written test with ease.

Now for the hard part.

This is it, I thought. My stomach was full of butterflies. I had never been so nervous in my life and, apparently, it showed. A lot.

As soon as the instructor walked to my vehicle, my nerves got the best of me, and I made some silly mistakes. Thankfully, no one honked at me during my test, and I didn’t run over any pedestrians.

When we were pulling back into the DMV, I parked the car perfectly. That is when the instructor broke the news to me. “You’re too nervous, Autumn,” he said. “I’m sorry. You didn’t earn your license today.” 

Defeated, I scheduled an appointment to take my road test for the second time ten days later, and this time I was very prepared. My boyfriend’s grandmother took me driving all over Concord, and I felt confident that I could pass this time.

During the second road test, I was calm and kept my cool the whole test. Then I accidentally cut someone off at the end, and that was a critical error, a.k.a, an automatic fail.

So I rescheduled again.

The third time, I just wanted to pass the test and never take it again. The good thing about New Hampshire DMV’s is that I only had to pay once.

This time, I took a few turns and changed lanes a few times. No problem. Then we went back to the DMV, and I parked the car. Nailed it. I knew that I had made one incorrect lane change and that it was going to dock me a few points, but then the instructor told me that he didn’t like the way I backed out of the parking spot in the beginning. I began to think the worst.

It was silent in the car. Not again. I kept my head down and closed my eyes as he said, “I am going to pass you today.”

It felt like a weight was lifted from my shoulders. I went inside the DMV with my test paper, and they gave me my temporary license.

If there’s anything to take away from my story, it is to relax. You will get your license when you’re truly ready. It’s hard to admit, but the instructors know when that time is.