Driving: Tragedy or Privilege?

Driving is one of the most exciting things we have the privilege of doing at the ripe age of 16. We teens are eager, ready to get behind the wheel and experience the first taste of freedom.

However, it was different for me.

I was raised in a small town where everyone knows everyone and a loss for one family is a loss for all. We have had a lot of teen deaths, most caused by driving accidents. A lot of people in my town are convinced our town is cursed, which shows how many deaths and car accidents there have been.

The ‘curse’ starts in 2006, a death that happened in my own family. Katie Zuidema, 17 years old, September 13, 2006. My cousin. She lost control while driving and crashed into a guardrail while on a phone call with her friend. Her car went up in flames, and she never got out. A tragedy for my family, a tragedy for the whole town.

Fast forward ten years, March 5, 2016. Payton J. Cook, 17 years old, dead, and two other teens injured, after a one-vehicle roll-over crash. Cook was an athlete, and a well-known, kind-hearted man. A tragedy for the Cook family, a tragedy for the whole town.

The next accident, Preston Behrens. My brother. December 16, 2016, the scariest date of my life. I was 11 at the time. Hearing my mom scream during a phone call was terrifying, but it was even worse when I figured out what she was saying. “Preston was in an accident, his car is split in half and it’s really bad,” is what I heard her say to my dad on the phone. He was on a gravel road, lost control, and ran into a guardrail. Sound familiar? Unlike my cousin’s accident, he went up and over the rail, and his car hung off of it with him inside. And yes, his car was literally in half.

He survived. He survived, but every first responder said he “should’ve been dead” based on how bad the accident was. He survived, but he was very injured, along with traumatized to drive for months after. He survived, but it was a miracle. And, still, it was a tragedy for my family, and a tragedy for the whole town.

Then, another car crash happened in 2019. Julia Walters, a close family friend and someone I looked up to growing up. February 8th, 2019, Walters lost control of her car and crashed, being ejected from the vehicle due to not wearing a seatbelt. She was pronounced dead at the scene. A tragedy for the Walters family, a tragedy for the whole town.

A year later, another teen died. Natalie Williams, 15 years old, a sophomore at my high school. She was a passenger when her boyfriend (driver) failed to stop at a stop sign and was struck by a semi on the passenger side. She, too, was pronounced dead at the scene. A tragedy for the Williams family, a tragedy for the whole town.

It’s been a few years now since a teen in our town has passed away from an accident. We all sit around, waiting, praying this is the end of the ‘curse’, wondering who’s next. Every time I see cops and ambulances fly by in town; I pray. I pray it’s not a repeat of past years while texting my friends and checking to see where they are and if they’re safe. Hence why, at the ripe age of 16, I was slightly hesitant to jump behind the wheel. A list of “what ifs” swarmed around in my head, all negatives. “What if I’m next”, a thought most teens in my town have. It’s scary, but it helps me remember to drive safely.

In December of 2021, I went to get my license. I was ready and confident when I stepped into the facility. When in the car with the instructor, I drove with confidence. With so much confidence, I managed to blow right through a red yield sign, mostly because I had no idea what it was.

You’d think after that I wouldn’t have passed, but I did. The lady laughed and told me what I had done. “But I’m sure you are a good driver, so I won’t fail you for it”, she said. I was happy I passed, but skeptical of others who got their license here. I am a good driver, and it was a mistake I haven’t ever made again, but I know others would make the same mistake, again and again. It made me realize how unsafe other drivers on the road are, and how easy it is to be a licensed driver. I wish the facilities around my town were stricter, and it makes me think, is that the true ‘curse’?

However, throughout the past 2 years of driving, I have driven countless miles, wasting hours on end. I have made mistakes, and I have learned. Despite the ‘what ifs’, I drive. I drive because it’s a privilege. Even after all the tragedies, it’s still a privilege; one I don’t take for granted.

When I drive, I try my best. I drive safely, double (sometimes triple) check when at stop signs and take it one step at a time. If we all turned off our phones, stayed focused on the road, and obeyed the laws, deaths from car accidents would go down tremendously. Personally, I always stay focused on the road, and I make sure people who drive me around do the same. I also drive more cautiously when I have passengers, as I would never forgive myself if I was responsible for anything happening to someone else.

I drive safely for myself, my friends, and my family. I drive safely so I am not ‘next’. I drive safely to save my town from yet another tragedy.