To Live With Pain is Still To Live

Driver education is an essential tool in reducing the number of deaths as a result of driving. It provides drivers with the knowledge and skills they need to operate a vehicle safely and responsibly. Primary tools discussed throughout these educational programs include knowledge of traffic laws, defensive driving, hazard detection, and vehicle maintenance. Rules of the road is a primary focus throughout driver education programs. Drivers who are knowledgeable about these laws are less likely to engage in risky behavior that subsequently causes accidents. However, knowledge is not always enough– a number of drivers still engage in dangerous behaviors, such as running red lights, or failing to yield to the right of way. This ultimately demonstrates the importance of the course’s next topic – defensive driving. Essentially, driver education will identify and elaborate on techniques to help drivers avoid accidents. They teach of scanning the road for potential hazards, maintaining a safe distance, and anticipating the actions of other drivers – though sometimes unpredictable. In order to identify these actions in advance, educational programs also teach hazard recognition. Identifying potential hazards, such as wet or icy conditions, road construction, and heavy traffic are crucial in ensuring the highest level of safety possible. Some safety hazards are not always outside of a vehicle. However, driver education properly equipped young drivers to learn how to handle mechanical failures. Ultimately, despite the surreal experience of mechanical issues or potential accidents, driver education programs are crucial in ensuring young drivers have the best possible response. By providing drivers with the knowledge and skills they need to operate a vehicle safely, driver education can help prevent accidents and save lives.

Despite the importance of driver education, it is not the only thing that can be done to lower these numbers. Governments can strengthen traffic laws such as speed limits, seatbelt laws, and laws against impaired driving. By further enforcing these laws, authorities can deter dangerous behavior and reduce the number of accidents. Moreover, improving road infrastructure by adding safety features like guardrails can further prevent accidents. Potholes are frequent causes of mild accidents, and simple things like repairing those and other hazards can reduce the number of accidents. Subsequently, encouraging responsible driving through government and advocacy groups will help educate the masses. Though all drivers know the dangers of a crash, only those who have truly experienced it themselves are fully aware the detriments accidents can have. By raising awareness of these issues, they can encourage drivers to take responsibility for their actions on the road before they have a first hand experience of the dangers. Improving vehicle safety can also help lower the number of casualties in accidents. Accidents are unpredictable, and no matter the precautions set in place they will always happen. However, improving vehicle safety can play a role in reducing deaths related to driving by including features like automatic emergency, braking, blind spot monitoring, and lane departure warnings. Reducing these numbers requires a multi faceted approach that involves a combination of improved infrastructure, education, enforcement, and technology.

I have had a first hand experience of the trauma and life-changing impact of a car accident just a month ago. Despite experiencing a driver education class just over a year ago, and learning about the dangers of the road, it seems so fictional and surreal to see it on the screen. In a sense, students become desensitized to these topics, and the concept that it could be you in the car seems ludicrous. It all happened so quickly; one second I was patiently waiting to make my left-hand turn, and the next my head was ringing, my door was caved in, and all I could see was the curb. It almost felt as if I was in a dream state, my music still playing, my phone still directing me to the beach I had planned to go to. After I escaped the surreal shock and trance I felt encapsulated in, my friend in the passenger seat began yelling at us to get out of the car. Smoke was blowing out and for a few minutes we thought it was going to explode. My back ached and my heart hurt, but all I could think of was my parents’ reaction. Deep down, I knew they were going to be glad I was safe and didn’t care about the car, but I did. By telling myself that they cared more about the materialistic item than my safety, allowed myself to validate that in that moment the materialistic item was what mattered to me. I had only had the car for a month, just getting the access to the freedom everyone always talks about having when you first receive your license. However, at this moment, I had never felt less free. We sat in the grass, just feet from the car that my dad had bought me. I felt nothing but shame and guilt. My dad had bought me that car and was so happy to give it to me that he cried. This was the third time in my life I had seen him cry– the first being my neighbor’s death despite my dad’s attempted CPR, and the second being when I told him about my self-harm. Seeing him cry tears– happy tears had become a highlight of our relationship, and it felt like I had ruined that. At that moment, he was all I could think about. I never thought the notion of death, and experiencing it, would be a thought that trickled into my mind in a sense beyond that of fear. However, looking at my car and the damage it sustained- though nothing compared to the mental impact- the subtle realization that had I been just a foot up, I wouldn’t be sitting there on the curb bleeding. After this realization, the blood almost felt as a comfort. The ache I felt in my head, and my back felt like a blessing. I held it together until I saw my dad come out of his pickup truck and walk towards me on the grass. He grabbed me and hugged me and told me it was going to be okay, that it was just a car and he’s much happier that we were all safe. For me, it was not just a car. I only had it for a month, but to me it symbolized my dad. It was a way to feel connected to him even when he wasn’t around, the sheer joy he felt giving it to me is something that I know I’ll never be able to repay. Nothing can teach you the pain of loss, nothing can teach you the pain of living– but to live with pain is still to live. Though my back still aches, and my eye is black and blue, I was blessed with the ability to live. Though I no longer find serenity in night drives, and go 20 minutes out of my way just so I don’t have to make a left-hand turn, I push, and I try my hardest, and I live. The once mundane eyerolls I cast at those in my school who drove irresponsibly have turned to tears welting in my eyes for fear that they will put someone through what I went through. I live, and the fear lives with me. My hope for those who do drive is that it will not take loss, pain, or a first-hand experience to drive like you’ve had one. Though my body will heal in time, and my black eye will fade, the pain will not fade with it. It is something I will live with, and the time, distraction, and new experiences, may overshadow the wound, the deepest parts of my tissue will always ache. A simple Wednesday drive to the beach has forever altered the way I feel on the road, but it allowed me to realize despite the pain, I live – and that is the greatest gift there is.

For me, becoming a better driver is about letting go and holding on all together. Hesitation kills, but so do intrusive decisions. It is never worth the rush. Being five minutes late to work is better than dying. Missing the sunset is better than it being your last. Rushing is never worth it. Drive like you’ve had a first-hand experience of the pain, drive like you never want to feel that again. Education is extremely valuable in learning the importance of protection, but true acknowledgment of the potential pain is the key to putting it to use.