Crash Course

Thud! My head slammed into the seat in front of me. Whoosh! The airbags in the front seats exploded into my parents’ faces. My head was throbbing as tears began to trickle down my face. “Is everyone okay”, my mom shouted. My father and I both replied that we were fine. I had never been in an accident til then. I didn’t know what to do, so I sat still in shock waiting for my mom to say something else. I couldn’t hear anything else my mom said over the screaming from bystanders on the street. Wee, woo, wee, woo. A blaring siren with blue and red flashing lights appeared in the distance. A wave of relief overcame me as I knew that help was nearby. Once a police officer helped me out of the car, I was able to see that the car behind us had rear ended our car. Both of the cars didn’t look like cars anymore, but they rather looked like mangled clumps of metal. Through all the chaos, I noticed a group of 4 teenagers only a few years older than me talking to a police officer. They were the people in the other car. I later found out that the driver was distracted by her friends when she hit us. At first, I was enraged that she was so careless when driving. However, the anger slowly faded away as I was just grateful that our crash was only minor and that nobody got seriously injured. Our accident could have been much worse, but our accident could have also been easily avoided. Thus, driver’s education is vital in teaching new drivers the best ways to prevent possible accidents.

3 years after this accident, I went to a driver’s education class. Most of my classmates were often joking around and not paying attention in class. My classmates didn’t realize how dangerous driving could become. On the other hand, I was focused on everything that was taught in the class. My accident replayed in my head during most classes, reminding how important the information that we were learning was. I believe that there needs to be more awareness about the dangers of driving because many young drivers don’t ever think that they will get into an accident until they do. Driver education classes should instill into young drivers that serious accidents CAN happen to them and they should practice safe driving procedures to minimize that risk.

As of now, I have had my driver’s licenses for 2 years. I know that when I get behind the steering wheel that I am responsible for my safety and the safety of other drivers on the road. I aim to limit as many possible distractions when I am driving. The first thing that I do when I get into the driver’s seat is put my phone into my middle console so that it is out of my reach while I am driving. I also never put my radio volume above 20 to ensure that I can focus and hear possible emergency vehicles. Lastly, I make sure that I feel comfortable and confident at all times while driving. If I need to pull over and wait out a bad rain storm, then I will. If I need to tell my friends to be quieter so I can pay attention to the road, then I will.

In short, through my experience in an accident I truly learned the seriousness of driving safely. I hope that other young drivers learn this lesson through their driver’s education classes and always practice safe driving habits like I do.