Name: Rachael Vanelli
From: HOLLEY, NY-New York
Votes: 2
Danger
is Everywhere; Especially on the Roads
By:
Rachael Vanelli
Safe
driving is something that has always been essential in my family.
From the time I could sit in a booster seat, my parents taught me how
to drive and how dangerous it could be. Now that I drive, I am so
thankful for my parents teaching me everything they did. Living in
upstate New York, the winters are brutal and driving means risking
your life. As my mom always said, if you don’t have to go
somewhere, then don’t. Because every time you get in a car, you’re
risking your life.
It
is imperative to educate the youth of today about safe driving
because the fact is, that most teenagers and young adults believe
they’re invincible. I was driving to work one day, and I hit a
patch of black ice. At first, when I lost control of the car, I
panicked and tried to regain control, as I was headed very fast
toward a tree. But all my lessons came back to me. I tapped the
breaks and turned the steering wheel in the direction the car wanted
to go. I spun 3 times before stopping, facing the opposite direction,
on the wrong side of the road. Had there been traffic, I’d surely
be dead. Thankfully, it was around 6:30 AM, so there wasn’t anyone
around. That day was very humbling to me because, I admit, I felt
invincible too. I felt like I could trust my little car, that we were
pals and that I’d never get in an accident. I viewed myself as a
good driver. I no longer feel that safety net of being behind the
wheel of my car. Now I understand why they’re called “accidents.”
Unfortunately, experiencing something so scary was the only way for
me to learn and really understand how scary driving can be and what a
privilege it is.
To
reduce the number of deaths in car accidents, we first have to reduce
the mindset that we are invincible. Accidents are likely, if not
probable, to occur at some point in your life. We have to be prepared
for emergency situations like my incident. We also must educate
ourselves about texting and driving. That is another large cause of
teenage deaths. Phones need to be made more inaccessible for teens
when driving. I always turn on driving mode when I’m in the car
because then I don’t get any little dings or buzzes to distract me or
tempt me to check my phone. The means are right there for us, all we
have to do is harness the technology and use it to our advantage.
I
believe that what impacts people the most is to hear stories from
people your age about their potential accidents like the one I’ve
recently experienced. That is why I’m submitting this entry. I
truly believe that my story could potentially save someone’s life
by making them more aware of their surroundings.
