Often when I take Jesse to school, the right hand lane of the main road that I turn onto from our subdivision is backed up a bit. Many people in that lane will migrate to the right after getting through the traffic light to get onto the highway entrance, so often I get into the second lane, and then get back into the right hand lane for my turn at the traffic light after the highway exit. I could just stay in the right hand lane in the first place, but it’s so backed up that I would miss the green light and have to wait til the next one, and it’s relatively easy to change lanes, so I usually do.

This morning I don’t know if I just wasn’t paying attention or no one was turning onto the highway and freeing up that lane, but all of a sudden it was about time to turn and I wasn’t in the right lane yet. I saw a bit of space and swooped in front of another car…but then I felt bad about it. I wasn’t intentionally cutting them off but it probably looked that way. I often tell my children that when they’re driving and they’ve made a mistake by missing their turn or exit, they need to inconvenience themselves by going to the next exit or turn and turning around rather than inconveniencing or even endangering other people. But it is just so tempting to zoom in.

I told Jesse that I’ve often wished I had a device that would flash a sign in my back windshield to the car behind me. Often I’ve wanted one that says to a close follower, “Please BACK OFF!” But I’ve also wished for one that said, “I’m sorry!”

The car I zoomed in front of made the same turn I did, and I thought, “Oh no — it’s someone from our school and they are going to think really badly of me.” But they didn’t turn into our school driveway, and I felt worse that, with a Christian school magnet on the back of my van, I had been a poor testimony.

I wish there was some way to indicate to that driver my regret. But I guess the next best thing would be to avoid thinking less than charitable thoughts the next time someone cuts in front of me and to tell myself they’re not trying to be mean or selfish or thoughtless — they’re just trying to take a chance to get into the right lane.