“With Great Power Comes Great Responsibility”

You wake up and get ready. Grab your keys, make sure you have your wallet, and your phone, off to whatever destinations you have on today’s agenda. Driving has become such a routine and essential part of all our lives. It’s how we can go shopping, go to work, and see our families. It is such a great thing that we have, but because it has become such a mundane thing, we often forget the responsibility that we take each time we go out onto the road. We have a responsibility to ourselves and everyone else on the road to be safe and educated drivers.

As I was getting ready to take the driver’s test, I was required to take a Drivers Ed class as part of my high school curriculum. I grumbled and complained about having to take the course. I didn’t see it as necessary, after all I had seen my parents drive so many times and I played Mario kart, so I was a pro. But what I didn’t realize was how important being an educated driver is. I remember that every time we would start driving with the instructor, he would give us his 5-minute spiel about wearing a seatbelt. We would just nod, say all the right things and get on with driving. It wasn’t too much later that a couple of my siblings and some friends were coming back from a trip, and it had snowed. They were cautious, driving slowly, but their car slid off the road, hit a snowbank and rolled down a small hill. Luckly they were all fine, because they were wearing their seatbelts. I realized that you can be the best driver, but sometimes accidents happen, and it is important to be informed of how to be safe in those situations.

One of the other take aways that I had from Driver’s Ed was driving defensively. Paying attention can not only prevent us from being the cause of an accident, but on the receiving end as well. Just this past week, my family and I were returning from visiting my grandparents. It had been a long drive (about 6 hours), it was dark, but we were just a few minutes from home. As we were pulling off the highway onto the exit, the car next to us decided it wanted to go left instead of right. It turned into our car without looking where it was going. My father was paying attention to his surroundings and was able to avoid the car. By being on the lookout we can prevent some of the crashes that happen.

That is just one example of many that people experience. While there are accidents that just happen, there are a large majority that can be prevented. It is my opinion that technology is related to a big percentage of these crashes/deaths whether directly or indirectly, as well as the role models we had growing up. My mother is always very cautious while driving. While I was growing up, I remember that anytime my mom wanted to change the radio she would ask whoever was in the passenger seat to change the station. Even now she will ask us to make a call or hand her a tissue. Her eyes never leave the road, ever. While that may be extreme in some cases or not entirely possible in other scenarios, it is the right idea. Our responsibility is to be present and focus on the road and those around us instead of our phones or the music that is playing. The devices distract us from being safe drivers. It does not matter how educated we are if we are not putting those skills and lessons we learned into practice on the road.

These experiences in my life have helped to shape the driver that I am. Regrettably, I must admit I do not always remember what I have learned. Sometimes I am distracted or sometimes I am altogether too comfortable with driving. While I have never been the cause of an accident, there are things I need to change to become a safer driver and apply the education that I received. I think patience is a big thing that I can work on. Being in a hurry causes me to be a little more reckless, which endangers me and those on the road as well. If I leave a little sooner, then I can negate the need to drive faster.

Driving is such an amazing tool we have at our disposal. It is astounding what it allows us to do and the freedom it gives us. However, with that freedom comes the responsibility to educate ourselves and be safe on the road. There are things that we can all improve on whether you have been driving for 40 years or 2 days. We cannot control other’s actions on the road, but we can control our own. I urge each one of us to think about what we can change as drivers and what examples we are setting for those around us. As we do this, we will save lives and others from heartache. Are you with me?