Responsibility
Above Necessity


Driving
is a privilege that can easily be taken away if you do not do so
carefully. It is now considered a necessity in today’s society to
get from one destination to another. In other words, many people have
thought of driving as a necessity and not a privilege with
consequence. Driver’s safety is an issue that few people choose to
regard because it has become the norm. Practicing safe driving skills
will lead to fewer chances of being involved in a life or death
situation.


When
I was three months old, my mother was driving us home from an
appointment, when out of nowhere a driver did not have their eyes on
the road and heavily crashed into our car. They had driven off after
the scene because they must have known how much danger they cast onto
other’s lives. My mother’s car seat went completely off its
track; her seatbelt had wrapped around her arm and neck so it was
almost impossible for her to get out to reach me. Ambulances were
called, thankfully the back of the car had formed a V-shape around my
carseat, and my mother had wrapped me in multiple baby blankets. My
mother was able to get out of her seatbelt with the help of
ambulances. It was hard for them to reach me, as I was trapped in the
backseat with no way of getting in without something falling on top
of me. Luckily, a woman stopped her car nearby and offered to crawl
into the car to get me out. I was out of the mangled car with my
mother, and that person was long gone. Ever since that day, my mother
has had a traumatic fear of getting into car accidents, or driving
all together. Police speculated the driver was on the phone since it
was a wide highway and an unusual situation with such an impact.


To
this day, I realize how important it is to be a safe driver. Anytime
someone is behind the wheel; they are putting their life, passengers,
and any other drivers on the road’s lives at risk. That driver
could have killed both my mother and I because of their reckless
driving behaviour. Therefore, when driving, carefully consider how
one minor thing such as texting can lead to killing someone because
of one choice you made. If anything, that message or notification can
wait, so it is best to wait until the car is no longer running and
parked before being on the phone at all. Paying attention to the
road, other drivers around you, and road laws are the best advice to
give to anyone who is behind the wheel. Even if you are taking all
safety precautions, it is not avoiding other driver’s who may not
be doing the same, but it is reducing the risk of anything happening
on your behalf. There will always be drivers on the road who are not
properly following safety precautions or watching the road; those are
the people who treat driving as a necessity to get by rather than a
privilege that can be taken away. If they were to continue their
reckless driving and result in a car accident, they will likely have
their driving privileges taken away and immediately regret their
decisions. Be smart and always follow the rules, so this situation
likely won’t happen.


The
main concerns when driving are drinking, texting, phone calls, loud
music, or passengers being disruptive. Anything can be a distraction
when driving. That is why keeping focus should always be the first
concern. I will forever be thankful I survived that car crash along
with my mother. That is proof that a lot can happen in such little
time when on the road just because a driver cannot focus. If one
finds themselves having a hard time focusing on the road, it is best
to let someone else drive or stop altogether, do not continue to
drive if you do not feel one hundred percent capable. A lot of people
have concerns over younger drivers because they do not have as much
driving experience, that can be true for the most part if they are
not following safety laws. For the most part, people with more
driving experience tend to disobey road laws due to the comfort of
being behind the wheel. No matter how much driving experience one has
had in their life, they should always obey driving as something
potentially dangerous. Driving is a responsibility, and with
responsibility comes rules. Obey traffic laws and signs; that should
always be a top priority. Don’t put someone else’s life in danger
because a text that had to be read immediately (it can wait.). Be
considerate of other drivers as well to prevent road rage. Treat safe
driving skills as a privilege, practice them continuously, and there
will be few chances involving a car accident.