Pay attention for our future!

As a 17-year-old girl, driving is scary. It is not scary because I am a bad driver, but because I cannot control how other people drive. I have been asked to answer a series of questions regarding negligence while driving. The first question is “What is the importance of driver education in reducing the number deaths as a result of driving?” I strongly believe one does not have to take the driver’s education course to be a good and smart driver. I did not take driver’s education and I am driving safely and cautiously. Going along with this question, I feel as though there is nothing anyone can teach you to make you a cautious driver. It is up to the person behind the wheel to be cautious, attentive, and most importantly smart while driving. The one thing I have noticed with my friends that drive, is people are less cautious and less attentive when they have passengers in their vehicle. This could very well be something that aids in death by vehicle accidents. Moving on to the second question “What steps can be taken to reduce the number of deaths related to driving?” The answer to this question is quite simple, the driver must learn to pay attention. So many people had died in car accidents because the driver of the vehicle or the other vehicle was not paying attention. Texting and driving are a huge cause of the number of accidents, along with drunk driving. Although you can give tickets and arrest people who violate these laws, people will still do it. Unfortunately, the risks of driving are the same on the interstate and in your hometown. The third question states, “Have you ever had an experience of being in car accident or have you seen your friends or family members driving irresponsibly?” My answer to this question may seem vague, but it is not. I have experienced this one to many times. I have been in a car accident that I was driving, and it was by far the most traumatizing event of my life. I was in a car wreck with a family member where our car was totaled. Although these wrecks were intense, neither stopped me from driving. My accident was getting t boned because I could not see past a car that was parked very close to the stop sign. In the end, it was my fault because I went without being able to see. Not a day goes by that I do not thank the heavens for not taking the life of either one of us involved. My other accident was with a deer. My family member was driving, and we could not see past a tree line that the deer came out of. The deer hit the windshield and totaled the car. Both front airbags deployed, and I had some minor whiplash. These accidents will not stop me from driving because ultimately, I could not control the outcome. Now, the final question is “What steps can you take to be a better and safer driver as well as help others become safer on the road?” I cannot control other’s driving. All I can do is make sure I am as focused and attentive as possible. While I drive, I make sure I am watching not only the road, but my surroundings including other vehicles. I can tell other drivers to pay more attention, stop texting, and focus all I want, but how far will that really go? It is not in my power to put others’ phone down, to turn down their music, to make them wear their seatbelts. All I can do is control my own driving and pray that I never get into another accident due to another driver’s negligence. It truly is sad how many people are in accidents that result in death or severe injury. More people need to know how to drive safer, but if someone does not want to learn they will not even try. I wish people would pay more attention, put down their phones, call a cab. With all my wishes, I can not control others’ decisions. I have a 16-year-old sister and the thought of her driving scares me. She is the smartest person I know, but she doesn’t know what other people do when they drive. She has no idea what it is like to drive alone. She has her permit and drives with her mother, but she only has a few months before she is driving her own car. I am going to college next fall and she will be driving herself and my 12-year-old brother to school every day. It is terrifying and leaves my uneasy when I think about it. My sister, Brianna, is very smart and I know she will drive just fine but others’ decisions that scare me scare her. All I want is for her to be able to drive safely without the worry that someone who is not paying attention will crash into her or cause her to crash. I wish I could make people pay attention for he sake, but all I can do is teach her to pay attention to not only herself, but other vehicles around her.