It’s Not All Bad Luck: Learning to Drive Safe

It was October 13th, 2023. My entire school was bustling around the school waiting for the football game later that night. Being Friday the thirteenth, everyone was lightheartedly joking that they hoped the bad luck wouldn’t reach our football players. I didn’t have Drivers Education on Fridays which I was happy about. I planned on going to the game with my friends, sitting in the students section, and cheering on our football team knowing that I wouldn’t have to worry about going to my Drivers Education class until Monday evening.

My grandfather took me and a friend to the football game where we did just that. I still have two pictures from that night—us smiling and laughing in our selfies. I was completely oblivious that later that night I would only look back at those pictures and think: What if? Despite that, the game came to an end. I asked to be taken home by my only friend that I knew who could drive. It was a “spooky” night so we went to the cemetery to visit her grandfather.

There we talked about dying and whether we feared it or not. On our walk—run, actually, because one of us got scared—out of the cemetery, we pondered that hypothetical question about dying right then and there: Where would we go? Are we scared to die? What would we see? How would our family feel? We got into the car while still talking about that question. The light was a solid green, but our driver hastily went to make her left turn with a truck coming down the road. We got just a taste of what possible death would feel like right then.

I was in the back when we were hit. I remember the sound of me talking, then being cut off, replaced by a bang. I remember blacking out for a second due to the sudden force of the impact. I could feel the airbags on the side of the windows. My glasses had flown off my face. I peeled my eyes open. The smell of smoke. It filled the expanse of the car and my panic set in. All I could think was, We have to get out. What if the car blows up?

Thankfully, that didn’t happen, and, after we made it out, only the right taillight was caved in on her car. However, the force of it totaled her car and left bruises on us, especially the girl sitting close to where we were hit. After being cleared and sent home by police, I could still smell the smoke. I could reach my tongue back by my right cheek and feel the cut there from when I clamped my mouth shut after the hit. My friend who had the bruise on her thigh said, “I could still hear the sound of it when I dropped my shampoo bottle on the ground.”

After that, I looked forward to my Drivers Education classes. I asked more detailed questions, and I was quick to schedule my driving times with a dedicated Instructor. I listened to his tips—make sure to turn into the curb lane on a single-lane left turn; don’t slow down until you’re in the left turn lane because of the people behind you; always check your blindspot; put your phone down when you’re being driven and watch where you are going—and internalized them. These questions and answers became vital to my education as a driver.

So, when first acquiring the privilege and skill to drive, I knew it was best to learn from a licensed driving instructor. Relying on my grandfather to teach me presented me with someone who had years of experience, but also a man who was used to his own laws on the road. I know people who are just waiting until they’re eighteen to get their licenses so they don’t have to spend money on classes or even just do them. But people don’t realize that learning from someone, taking classes, and having scheduled lessons helps decrease their chances of death or accidents.

Most accidents about teenagers are only ever discussed, but no one ever gives solid advice on how to fix it. Most kids my age also don’t know the feeling of being in an accident—no matter how mild it is. Therefore, we need to make it more accessible, affordable, and encourage people to take classes and drive with someone whose job it is to teach people of all ages how to drive properly. This would protect people on the road, but also passengers and yourself.

While schools and advertisements have taken steps to warn teenagers about drunk driving or texting, they often fail to promote resources on how to learn how to drive, when it’s the proper time to do so, the law about texting and drinking about driving, and provide us with real-life examples of just how scary distracted driving in any form can be. It all feels impersonal. But taking steps to expose these truths and providing numbers and website links to credible driver education businesses would be a step in the right direction.

Every single time I got into my car to learn how to drive, I remembered that night. Now that I have my license, I make certain to remember that night. That crunch of metal and the scream of my friend, so I know that I never want to put myself or anyone in that situation again. Educating all drivers became important to me that day. If we need to be educated in subjects like math and language, then we must be educated on how to drive so we can arrive safely and live to learn them.