It Only Takes One Second

            

Makayla
M. Brown 

       It
Only Takes One Second

When
I was just 6 years old, my aunt and uncle decided to take a family
trip to Disneyland with their four kids; my cousins. As they were
driving to Disneyland one night, my cousin named Ally, had dropped
her sippy cup behind the driver’s seat. My uncle, not wanting to wake
my aunt who was asleep in the passenger’s seat, took his eyes off of
the road to pick up the sippy cup which Ally had dropped. At that
time, he then veered into oncoming traffic. Trying to correct his
mistake, my uncle swung the steering wheel back into his lane. With
too much force, the car began to roll. The car rolled five times
before coming to a complete stop. 

The
whole family was immediately life flighted to nearby hospitals. My
uncle lost his life that day. The rest of the family who had
survived, sustained some serious injuries that will stay with them
for the rest of their lives. Luckily, each member of the family was
wearing a seatbelt. Had they not been wearing a seatbelt chances are
they would have all lost their lives. Not only my cousins but myself
as well, we were all able to learn some very valuable lessons at a
young age. Not only did we learn the importance of wearing a seatbelt
but also the importance of never taking our eyes off of the road. 

I
saw first-hand how one simple mistake could potentially take the
lives of many. Each year nearly 1.25 million people are killed in car
accidents. Drivers ed is important because each driver is
provided with the skills, attitude, and knowledge that is needed for
vehicle safety, in order to prevent or reduce the number of deaths
that occur each year. In a paragraph on a website, Driversed.com
under the How And Why section, a sentence read ¨Drivers ed
helps you learn the laws that will keep you safe on the road. In many
states, drivers ed is required by law before you are issued a
driver’s license.¨

There
are many steps that each driver can take to help prevent the number
of deaths caused each year. Some of these steps will include never
looking at a cell phone while being behind the wheel, never driving
while intoxicated (do not drink and drive), and never drive when
feeling too tired or emotional. You will want to follow all traffic
laws, such as speed limit signs and rules of the road. Rid yourself
of distractions, always be alert and aware of your surroundings, and
remain calm. These are all steps to better and safer driving.
Learning and having drivers ed is an important step to take
if we want to prevent or lower the amount of deaths each year. If one
or more of these steps are avoided this is when an accident occurs
and could have a serious effect on your own life as well as the life
of others.