The Commitment

The
Commitment

Emma
Bower

Parents every
day across the United States hand their children a set of keys to a
car. The car may not be brand-new, but it is surely brand new to
their child. Parents pass off these keys with a small list of
statements similar to the following: “Don’t text and drive. Lock
your phone in your glovebox. Texts can wait.” These children
eagerly nod their heads and snatch the keys not realizing what they
are committing to.

It does not
matter what make or model their vehicle is; it is a two thousand
pound weapon that did not have to be registered as such. Handled
incorrectly, vehicles can be wielded to hurt individuals inside the
vehicle or simple by passers without the driver even realizing. Lives
can be saved when new and old drivers are educated about safe
driving.

Distracted
driving is one of the largest causes of unsafe driving. It is much
more than using technology while driving. While texting and driving
is not an issue to be ignored, there are several other ways that
individuals can carelessly drive.

I can recall a
time that I was a passenger in a vehicle with an individual close to
me. It was a gorgeous summer day, and I was coming home from
volunteering at my church with a handful of close friends. As one of
the only individuals yet to receive my license, I had to resort to
the age-old transportation of carpooling. We had the whole day
planned: swimming, talking, and enjoying our young lives. Singing
songs and goofing around on a summer day swiftly turned into a
difficult situation. Whether it was the driver in front of us who
slammed on his brakes too quickly, the front seat passenger telling a
joke loudly, or simply a case of sun-glare, the driver rear-ended the
vehicle in front of us at a stop light. There was no technology
involved. The driver had both hands on the wheel, so much so that
there were burns on their arm from the air bag. One could say that it
was a fluke accident, but if the scenario is evaluated more closely,
there may have been less of a chance that this happened if the music
had not have been so loud, if we had not distracted the driver with
jokes, and if we had understood the responsibility that we were
bestowed by stepping foot into a vehicle.

Thankfully, our carelessness that day did not result in death, but
it did result in minor injury. We were also all left with the feeling
of guilt and a personal commitment to reevaluate our attitudes each
time we sat down in a vehicle. These feelings of culpability were
scars not so easily shaken. Despite the fact that I did not have a
license, I played a part in my friend’s distracted driving. Any
individual in a vehicle should educate themselves about the weight of
the responsibility they carry, no matter their age.