Name: Caprie Gordon
From: Oklahoma City, Oklahoma
Votes: 0
As a child, I couldn’t wait to turn sixteen. I would finally be to
drive myself anywhere I wanted; although, my mom would say otherwise.
I remember I used to try my hardest to focus on the road while my mom
drove. I saw it as “practice,” but I always seemed to find
my attention drifting elsewhere. The truth is, it can be hard to
focus on the road. I found it difficult then, and it has only become
more difficult since. Now, I’m not an old-timer by any means, but I
do remember a time when cell phones weren’t as savvy as they are now.
There wasn’t much to do on them other than makes calls and play
PacMan. Nowadays, cell phones give you the world at your fingertips,
and it’s hard to put them down, even when you’re driving a car. Just
because it may be hard to be a consistent, safe driver, does not mean
it’s impossible.
According to the National Safety Council, there were 40,000
road-related deaths in 2018 alone. Driving can be dangerous– unless
you take preemptive measures. Educating yourself and others on the
dangers that come with driving are a good place to start. Even
learning how many people die on the road each year might help you
understand that its more likely to happen to you than you think, and
hopefully that would encourage you to be a better driver.
Steps that we can take ourselves to be safe drivers are, of course,
to keep both hands on the wheel always. If your hands are on the
wheel, then they can’t be holding your phone, or fixing your makeup,
or eating your food. It’s a one-step solution to just about all
self-inflicted driving accidents.
However, accidents aren’t always our faults. We may be driving
safely, but someone else on the road could be distracted, or under
the influence. There are so many variables on the road, things
seemingly out of our control. That’s when becoming a defense driver
comes int to play. When you’re driving defensively, you’re not only
mindful of yourself, but of other drivers. If you see someone
speeding in the distance behind you, maybe you change lanes in
advance. If you come to an intersection with no stop signs, stop
anyway. There may be another car who assumes they don’t have to stop
either. It’s better to be safe than sorry.
Accidents are scary. I have personally been in a wreck. I was stopped
with my blinkers on, waiting to turn into my neighborhood when I car
rear-ended me. Thankfully, I was wearing my seatbelt and only
suffered a scrape to the elbow. But things could’ve been worse had
been propelled forward without a seatbelt to stop me. Protect
yourself because no one else will.
Driving can be as
dangerous as we make it. Let’s keep our cars up to date, follow the
rules, and go above and beyond so that everyone can live to drive
another day.
