Our oldest daughter, Jona-Lynn, is a 22 year old recent graduate from Nyack College. After spending five or six months back at home with her mother, youngest sister, and me, she landed a job with Americorps in Austin, Texas. She moved there at the very end of October, so she's been there exactly a month.

Before moving, she bought a car from a friend. This was the vehicle she was supposed to take to Austin and use for the year she will live there. Unfortunately, after a trip to Philadelphia to attend a wedding, the car died in the parking lot of our local bank, and now it sits dead in our driveway.

So, plan B had her renting a car for the trip, and her best friend and former college roommate flew up to Maine to share the drive with her. Becky is from Houston, which is two or three hours from Austin, so it worked out well.

On the Austin end, a friend of a friend was looking for a car for Jo upon her arrival. He did his job well, as he was able to purchase a vehicle within her price range at an auction. Then, on her first evening in Austin after her Americorps training , she and her two roommates went out for the evening. On the way home, sitting still as the fifth car waiting at a red light, a drunk driver slammed into her car and totaled it. After getting out of his car, the drunk approached Jo's roommate and asked for a cigarette!

The police came and dragged the drunk driver off to jail, and my wife and I got a call at 3:30 in the morning. There wasn't much we could do but pray with her. As she often does, she amazed us with her spiritual strength and grace when she shared that she asked the police officers to let the other driver know she forgave him. I'm not sure I do, to be honest.

So now she is carpooling to work trying to sort out all the insurance paperwork, but she is settling into her job. I don't know a lot of what she does yet, but I know she works with at risk high school students, and her first big assignment is to organize a job fair for these teens to be held in the spring. She enjoys her roommates, has found a church, and likes the art scene of Austin. Best of all, the little Mexican kids next door come over to play often. She wants to eventually do orphanage work in Africa someday, so she has a heart for kids. Up to nine little boys have been in their apartment at one time, wrestling in their living room. Leave it to Jo.

Finally, for Thanksgiving, she took a bus to visit Becky and her family in Houston. On the way there, the bus broke down and they were stranded for three hours until another bus could arrive. She's going back to Austin today, and we really hope there's no more vehicle problems. I guess this is how one becomes an adult.