driving on a farm

I learned how to drive on the family farm when I was young. I plowed fields, and drove an old beat-up truck between pastors. When the fields were ready to be harvested I woke up at 4:30AM and met my grandfather and brothers in front of the barn. My granddad drove me out to a pasture and tossed me the keys to a tractor we had left there the night before. I jumped in and started the engine and would drive back and forth until lunch time. Around noon I would hear my grandad’s truck bouncing along the dirt road in my direction. Lunch time. He would drive the tractor down and back while I ate my sandwich and then I was back in the driver’s seat until sundown. We were poor so we were always fixing trucks or tractors or motors of some kind. Something would break and we would be behind on our chores that day trying to fix it. In my eyes that was the worst outcome that could happen in regards to vehicles. For a long time that’s all I knew; I didn’t know the danger that came from driving around other cars, I only knew the danger that came from not finishing chores on time. I didn’t understand that every time I got on a public road I was taking everyone’s life in my hands, and others were holding mine as well. I didn’t understand that those days I drove completely alone was the most simple, and safe driving would ever be.

Maturity behind the wheel comes with experience. And I had lots of experience by the time I was driving around other cars. I tried to keep the passengers in my car safe by stopping at stop signs and following the speed limit. It wasn’t until I took a drivers ed class that I realised how important my driving is to keeping passengers in other cars safe as well. I learned that I needed to be careful not only for my brother who was in the passenger seat beside me, but I needed to protect the baby in the car behind me too. Once I realised that I didn’t eat breakfast in my car no matter how late I was to school, and I didn’t text my boyfriend back no matter how important I thought it was.

The laws are there for a reason, and the reason isn’t just to keep me safe, it’s to keep everyone safe. The speed limits are not suggestions. There are engineers that calculate a safe speed limit based on wind speed, and corners, and other features of the road. The laws are what help keep drivers safe. We don’t need to come up with new ways to stay safe, we need to perfect the ways we already have. Just stay off your phone, wear your seatbelt, pay attention to what is going on around you. Maybe there is a lack of understanding how dangerous the road really is, maybe if we understood what risk we are at we would follow guidelines. Because they aren’t hard guidelines, cops aren’t asking us to cut off our arm, they are asking us to use our mirrors and blinkers when we change lanes.

I am glad that drivers ed explains the risks you are taking on when you drive, and i am thankful for the individuals who pay attention and take it seriously. I have never been in a serious car collision and I plan to keep it that way. If that means I need to remind the driver of the laws then I will, because my safety and the safety of those around me is important. I am grateful for the experiences in my life that have bettered my understanding of car safety.

I’ve grown up a little more now, I have a licence and drive on public roads as often as everyone else. But when I look out the windshield and see some of the carelessness around me, sometimes I wish I was back on that field. I’ll admit there are great things that come from advancements in transportation. There are many lives that are being saved because of ambulances and helicopters. But with an increase in convenience and speed there is an equal or greater increase in risk. I urge people to take time to realise what you are doing in the car. When you are speeding off to get to Thanksgiving dinner on time this year, take a moment to think about the people that are there waiting for you. Think about your loved ones and the loved ones of others when you are doing something as potentially dangerous as driving.