The ID Card

Written February 22, 2020


My husband's driver's license expired shortly after he'd already been placed in a facility. I had made a failed attempt to get him an official identification card at the time ("No, he can't come in himself. He's in a memory care facility. Can't you use his existing picture?!"). I had sent in the required paperwork, but it had been returned with numerous things to correct and a request to refile. He hadn't been driving for several years, and he still had a valid passport. So I let it slide.

Being heavily stressed at the time, I had put the resultant paperwork "somewhere," and I didn't feel any real urgency to try it again right away. I figured we could always use his passport, if need be. But with his passport now expiring soon, it just didn't feel right to not follow through with the card. A person should have valid identification, though I'm not sure why exactly. He'd always had a driver's license for his entire adult life, and I supposed a Senior Citizen Identification Card could come in handy at some point. Besides, the situation was adding to my general nervousness. I decided to check this item off my list of things to do.

Miraculously, a month ago, I found the manila envelope containing fresh forms along with the rejected ones. I carefully completed them, taking into account all the things I'd done wrong the first time, and then I went to the Department of Motor Vehicles to get the job done. With some amount of trepidation, I submitted the forms to a nice young man who said everything looked like it was in order, and the card should arrive in a month or so. While this should have been comforting, it wasn't. That's what they had said the first time!

I waited for the mail to arrive. Had I made a mistake in the paperwork again? Would it be returned for refiling again? I berated myself for not taking care of business immediately the first time. And I waited.

Today, there was an envelope from the DMV in the mail. It wasn't a giant manila envelope; it was a No. 10. It didn't weigh much, but there was a hard item in the middle. Holding my breath, hoping for the best and preparing for the worst, I opened it.

His official ID has arrived, complete with the same beautiful picture of my handsome husband that was on his driver's license. I'm so relieved.