In the Driver’s Seat…Someday

Maya Lupescu

In The Driver’s Seat…Someday

I wasn’t sure if I could apply for this scholarship. I am a high school senior in the Visual Arts/Honors Program at Senn High School in Chicago. I have applied and been accepted to several colleges in the midwest that I am currently considering. In many ways, I am a lot like my fellow classmates. In other ways I am quite different. Four years ago I was diagnosed with Hashimoto’s, an autoimmune condition that explained why I was having a hard time focusing and why my energy had been so low. Once I started taking thyroid medication, I felt better and learned how to pay close attention to my health and symptoms. I also learned how important it is to adapt to changing expectations and how to advocate for myself. I think that is one of the reasons I am so drawn to Biology—because I want to find answers to scientific questions facing our planet and hopefully help people, animals, and planet Earth.

What does this all have to do with driving? Driving is a physical act that requires incredible mental and emotional focus. I would argue that being a good driver requires knowing your strengths and weaknesses. It requires understanding the connection of knowledge, experience, and attention as an important part of the driver’s education. It is also the reason I have chosen not to get my drivers license yet. The key word is yet. I completed driver’s education in high school, I passed the tests.I received my permit. I am an honors student, I understand the mechanics and the rules of the road. I know the basics of driving, and I understand just how serious it is to be behind the wheel of a vehicle that can on the one hand get you safely from place to place, or on the other hand can be involved in an accident that hurts or kills. That is why I have decided to wait. In the meantime, I live in Chicago, where I can take public transportation to get to most places I need to go. I don’t need to get my license just for the sake of getting my license.

Getting my driving license is not an act I take lightly. I don’t think it is something I am simply entitled to. I don’t think it is something I need to have as a rite of passage. I don’t think every 16-year-old is ready to bear that responsibility, especially taking into account how many of my generation have a hard time with focus and attention, having grown up with a phone in hand and texting at our fingertips. Phones and cars are a frightening combination. I’ve often watched drivers from passing cars that are not paying attention. That’s terrifying.

My drivers education taught me how to be careful, how to pay attention to what’s going on around me. I watched the videos and read the statistics. I listened to discussion and shared experiences about close calls and lessons learned. These experiences were really important ,and they made an impression. They impressed upon me the gravity of the choice to get behind the wheel of a car. Every time someone gets behind the wheel, they have to commit to pay attention. They have to commit to apply the lessons they have learned. They have to assess how they are feeling and how the situation on the road presents itself (snow, rain, darkness, fog).

So many of my generation have grown up on video game simulations of driving that lull them into a false sense of confidence about what it takes to drive successfully. It’s easy to understand why they feel that way. After hundreds of hours of simulation driving, it does feel like you are an expert. But virtual is not the same as real life. The real life factors cannot be duplicated, and the stakes are much much higher. There is no “do over” if you crash. There are only consequences.

My parents are both careful drivers. The few accidents we have been involved in have been because someone else rear-ended us or swerved into us. Scary in the moment, we were lucky. I have always felt safe in my parents’ cars because I feel like they have modeled good driving behavior. I appreciate them teaching me the basics, and I know that when I decide I’m ready to get my license I will be able to come to them for more practice.

What steps can I take to be a better and safer driver? The first step is waiting until I am ready. The next step is committing to mindfulness on the road whenever I do get my driver’s license. I will review the rules of the road, and I will take it slow. There is no shame in careful consideration of our choices. It’s the same kind of careful consideration I will apply to my driving each and every day.