A Vehicle, Is A Weapon

Asia
Felton

Driver’s
Education

Scholarship
Application

A
Vehicle, Is A Weapon

To
this day, I deal with severe anxiety out of fear of not being in full
control of my life. When it comes to my future and even my wellbeing,
I can sometimes feel like I have no control. So when it comes to
getting behind a wheel, and navigating this world in a vehicle, I can
sometimes feel like I have little control over that too. I know that
other drivers deal with this, especially young people who are new to
being on their own in their cars. Many people grow up riding with
parents or guardians who never fully followed the rules, and as
children they trusted the older adults and their skills. It was the
same with me, my mom always drived a little too fast, sometimes
missing her blindspots consistently. And this scared me and always
impacted my anxiety, yet it was my mom and she was my only example.
But this has to change so that it’s not passed on.

Drivers
education is extremely important because like my mom always says, a
vehicle is a weapon. Just like any other item used to weaponize,
vehicles can do the same. They have caused horrific and disturbing
deaths, and they have traumatized many people as well. So all drivers
must remember that they have the power to pull, or not pull the
trigger, even accidentally. And that comes with being educated. All
drivers must know the basics on how to drive and how to be safe about
it. But rarely do educators address the psychology around driving and
how driving with one’s emotions can lead them astray. For example,
many people tend to speed when they’re angry or distracted, some
also slow down when they’re sad, tired or even crying. Being aware
of how you feel while driving is very important and drivers must know
that they can pull over and calm down. Emotions often tend to lead to
substance abuse which also impacts driving. Not being in one’s right
mind can cause one to abuse drugs and alcohol and such actions can
lead to driving carelessly, causing harm and even death.

As
a community of drivers, we must understand that everyone is human and
that we, ourselves are human. Therefore we have to look out for
ourselves and show ourselves some grace so that we don’t weaponize
our vehicles. For myself, and for others as well, I recommend fully
processing our thoughts and rationalizing our ability to drive
everytime we get behind the wheel. It’s as simple as thinking, “Are
you well enough to drive right now?” We can properly do this by
educating ourselves on the psychology of driving, and also
surrounding ourselves around the right people who can hold us
accountable. Remembering that our cars can kill should be enough for
us to care.