Life’s What You Make It So Let’s Drive It Right

Mercy
McVicker

DMV
Scholarship Essay

March
31st, 2020

Life’s
What You Make It So Let’s Drive It Right

(Sung
to Life’s What You Make It by Hannah Montana)

I
have been in 2 car accidents in my life so far.

And
it’s a miracle I came out of both of them alive.

In
both of the accidents I wasn’t behind the wheel, but instead I was a
minor and honestly just a victim to other people’s dangerous driving.

Being
able to drive is a privilege, and privileges can be taken away! Not
everybody has the opportunity to drive, maybe due to medical issues
or maybe because they don’t have a vehicle to call their own. Either
way, the amount of people that can drive is somewhat limited. So in
my opinion, we should focus on educating that group of people as much
as possible, and that starts with the new drivers! When
irresponsibility and reckless or arrogant drivers get out on the
road, they become a threat to everyone else on the road, including
pedestrians. In one of the crashes, I was a young girl crossing the
road with my mom, and somebody hit us. If my mom hadn’t picked me
up and held me in the air, the car would have hit my head and caused
severe damage if it didn’t kill me immediately. In the other car
crash I was in, my family was on a road trip, driving through empty
roads when somebody turned in front of our car, causing my dad to
swerve into a ditch to avoid a head on collision. Our car was
totaled. His quick reflex to turn saved our lives, and the life of
the other driver as well. In both of those cases, I wasn’t even
driving. Still, the danger of other drivers directly impacted me. The
interference to this danger is education! If people can be educated
from the start just how much control they can have in safe driving,
then the next generation of drivers will be more aware, which will
prevent crashes. Education is getting to the root of the issue, which
is the drivers themselves, and increasing knowledge of this issue.
But education is also necessary to the group of people who aren’t
driving yet, or can’t I’ve had friends try to get behind the wheel
when they are drunk, but every time someone has stopped them, and
either invited them to stay at the house or to order an uber. We need
more of those people, the ones who are informed of the dangers and
aware enough of the situation, and brave enough to step in and do the
right thing in order to stop any dangers on the road. Increasing
education could start in high school classrooms, in required classes
where students aren’t taught to drive, but instead they are taught
the importance of that knowledge they will. Then, when students are
in Drivers Ed, they will realize the importance and relevance of what
they are learning and maybe they will pay attention more and spread
the word.

The
biggest “trend” in youths should be safety. Life is short! Let’s
not make it any shorter with uneducated and dangerous drivers.