Drive With Purpose

Drive
With Purpose

At
15 years old, I earned my learners permit. I felt nervous, but
excited. At 16 years old, I passed my driver’s test. I felt
excited. At 17 years old, a group of students from a local high
school were hit by a drunk driver and, instead of making it home that
night, made the headline of the morning news. I felt different. Those
young teenagers were grouped into the average 34,000 people that die
each year due to the fatal consequences of irresponsible driving.
Someone’s mother, father, aunt, cousin, best friend, spouse,
brother, or classmate made up that number. This figure is haunting,
but even greater is the immeasurable guilt and pain left behind with
the survivors, whether directly responsible or indirectly involved.
Irresponsible driving is a choice made by one person, in a fleeting
moment, that affects everyone long term. It is the reason I am
writing this essay, as well as the reason you are reading it.
Whenever someone is behind the wheel and in the driver’s seat, they
hold great responsibility, not only for their own life, but for the
lives of those they share the road with.

Ultimately,
the goal of drivers ed is that the impact of driving
responsibly will decrease the occurrence of the fatalities associated
with avoidable collisions. Survival is not guaranteed, nor likely,
when it comes to reckless driving and understanding the rules of the
road, the importance of abiding by them, and the value of human life
could significantly reduce casualties and save lives. Driving, above
anything, is a responsibility. It starts with experienced driver’s
mentoring inexperienced ones and instilling in them the value and the
weight their contribution to society holds.

When you’re out with your
friends at a party and they insist they’re ok to drive home, notice
the slur in their words caused by the drink in their hands and call a
taxi. When your loved one texts you on your way home from work,
notice the car suddenly breaking in front of you and put your phone
away. When you’re pulling out of the driveway and your little
sister’s in the passenger seat, notice how she’s watching you and
buckle up. When you’re late to work on a Monday morning, notice the
blur of the trees and stop signs whizzing by and slow down. These are
just a few of the situation’s individuals experience on a daily
basis that deceivingly pose as trivial choices but are really a
matter of life and death, in many cases.

It
starts with noticing – yourself and others. By driving responsibly
and encouraging others to do the same, the distance between where we
are as a society and where we want to be narrows. Our personal
choices, regarding road safety, are responsible for adding to or
reducing the 34,000 average – they have been from the beginning. If
each one of us drove with the mentality that we’re one choice away
from bringing change to our society, the results would be empowering.
So, what are you waiting for? Adopt this mindset, consistently choose
to drive with purpose, and be empowered.