Behind the Wheel

You get behind the wheel of your first car. It is your first time driving alone without adult supervision. The mixed feelings of excitement, freedom and nervousness float around in your head. You know what do to, you passed every test in drivers ed and there is nothing to impair you – yet it isn’t always you that you need to worry about. As you drive off to go get a late-night snack of ice cream, you notice two very bright lights straight ahead. You think nothing of it … until it is too late. Those bright lights were coming at you very fast and in your lane. The very tragic accident happening in only less than a minute, and forever changing your life. Stories like these happen every single day. Taking away innocent lives in only matters of seconds. You never think much of it until it happens close to you. I had a family friend who had passed away due to a car accident only a couple of years ago. He was only 15, had his whole life ahead of him. He was the most caring and thoughtful person you could have ever met, and his legacy will forever be carried on and remembered. That is why this scholarship stuck out to me, because it is so very important that everyone passes their drivers education program and realizes how consequential driving really is.

By realizing the importance of drivers education and taking good steps in practicing safe driving, we can reduce the statistics of deaths by car accidents every year. Steps that we can take in order to reduce this number could be to make sure that everyone behind the wheel is perfectly able to drive and has no impairments; such as alcohol in their system or being fatigued. It is also very important that the driver has passed drivers ed and the passengers are all buckled up with no distractions to the driver. I can always make sure that whatever vehicle I am in that the driver is safe. By making sure that our vehicle is safe, we will protect others. When you are in a car with a driver that is impaired, you are not only putting yourself into harm's way, but you are risking other people's completely innocent lives. But I am only one person. I cannot make the road a safer place all by myself, YOU must take action as well. If we want to make the road safer, we all need to take a stand and promote safe driving skills. We all need to work together in order to make the road safe. Stories like the one I told before are tragic, heartbreaking and based on true events; however, you will never truly experience the pain and heartache these stories bring until it happens to you. Don’t let it get there, and make sure everyone is driving with the right mind and attitude.