I remember the day I got my license. I’d miserably failed the parallel parking test, but had avoided wreaking too much havoc on the open road, so my instructor let me pass. This was, of course, only after I swore on my first born to always search for a parking lot before even trying to attempt a parallel parking maneuver. So far, no adoption papers will be needed. The sheer bliss of “being my own person” was incredible. I could go to the mall or stay at home if I wanted, and didn’t have to wait on my parents to chauffer me all over town. Yet, those first days of freedom were soon shadowed, at least in part, by the heavy load of responsibility that came with being the primary driver of my Jeep. Watching the needle of the gas gauge was now my calling and, despite an agreement with my father for one free tank of gas a week, the money required to keep the needle above “E” often came out of my own pocket. Weird knocking noises? Oil changes? Washer fluid running low? A front tire that seemed a little flat? These were all my worries now. I carried the burden for my vehicle, its condition, my safety, and the safety of my passengers.

This still hasn’t deterred me from driving. I didn’t shred my license and stomp out the first time I had to suffer the inconvenience of waiting for my oil to be changed. I have yet to refuse to put my car in gear just because the low fuel light is blinking and I will be the one to foot the bill. In short, the responsibilities that have come with my freedom have been worth the privilege of being able to come and go on my own terms. Of course, like most teens, life with a car involves curfews and checking in to let someone know of where I’m going. Sometimes it was annoying, other times just part of the routine, but again, the freedom is more than worth the responsibility that has come with it.

Many things in life are the same way. We live in a free country, but it must be protected. We have the right to vote, but it must be exercised. We have the benefit of free public education, but we must apply ourselves to learning in order to reap the benefits. Perhaps I’m the odd one out, but I don’t believe that everything in life should come free. I don’t think that it is unfair that many privileges must be earned, not merely received. I am not of the opinion that anyone is entitled to anything that they are unwilling to work for. There is a saying that “freedom doesn’t come free,” and it is true. However, the American society as a whole sometimes forgets that most everything else in the world doesn’t come free either.