Mackenzie Gavin
Drivers Ed Scholarship

It was a Saturday night. My brother, friends, and I had decided to go to Charlotte to see a community college’s production of the musical Chess. My friends and I had agreed we would meet in Huntersville then I would take all of us to Charlotte. On the day we were meant to go, my brother and I waited in the parking lot, my friends had agreed to meet me in. A few moments later they came with the smoothies we all ordered. I recall my brother and I had ordered bright red smoothies. My two friends piled in the car and we were on our way to Charlotte.
That day, there was traffic that made the four-way intersection we needed to go through, completely blocked by the cars going the other way. I hoped it would clear once our light turned green, but found as the light turned it was still completely blocked. I waited for a few moments until the cars moved forward creating a small gap and began to inch forward. Soon enough, a gap was created just big enough for my car and I headed through, but I noticed out of the corner of my eye, our light was beginning to turn yellow. I remember being almost on the other side when the car was abruptly shifted to the left.
A car had hit us on the passenger side.
We didn’t stop until we were rolling towards a metal pole and I quickly slammed on the brakes and put the car in park and pulled on the emergency brake.
When we stopped, I remember before I could fathom what had occurred I blurted out the words, “Is everyone okay?” There were a few murmurs that everyone was well, except being covered in the thick red smoothie. We were lucky that none of us were too badly injured. We were lucky that no one was killed.
Accidents really make every rule you’ve learned about driving come into perspective.
If those cars hadn’t been blocking the road, I could've completely avoided the accident.
If the driver who had hit us had waited for one more second to see if the area was clear, the driver probably wouldn’t have hit us.
This shows how important it is to teach people the small things like not blocking the road or ensuring the way is clear before going, can add up to something bigger.
Like I had learned from my accident even when someone makes one small mistake, it can really impact others.
However, I am not only counting on others to pay attention but also taking my own steps to be a safe driver. For example, I wait for a second more at traffic lights when they turn green or I put my phone out of my reach to ensure I am not tempted to grab it.