I searched online for the name of the only man I had ever seen die.  He was thirty-one years old with a wife and a newborn son, two people who would never see him walk through the door that night to celebrate Christmas Eve.
I knew this devastating information before anyone else because I was one of the first people to see his life end. 
On December 24th, 2021, my grandmother, mother, aunt, and I were going shopping to gather last-minute gifts. My grandmother suddenly swerved onto the grass. We bounced around like bowling balls in the process, so we criticized her for not watching the road.
Her response to our criticism?
"Did you see that driver in the other lane? He was heading into our lane. I had to get off the road."
We all soon realized that we should have been praising my grandmother instead of criticizing her. She was watching the road, and because she was, she saved our lives. 
Tragically, the driver that minutes before had caused my mom to veer off the road had continued moving into the opposite lane and hit the young woman driving the car behind us head on. Being a nurse of thirty years, my mother pulled over and rushed to the closest car. I followed.
I never learned the woman in this car's name, but that doesn't matter. Her bloodied teeth and desperate first words to "please call my mom" are enough to haunt me three years after the event.
Luckily, she survived, most likely due to the seat belt I noticed she was wearing.
However, I became confused when I looked at the other car, the one holding the driver who caused the collision. The rescue squad and ambulance had arrived by this point, but they were not gathered around his car. His vehicle suffered the most damage, so I assumed he was more badly hurt. Why weren't they helping him? I quickly learned the reason. He had died on impact, and as I walked closer to the car, I could see his young slack face laid back against the headrest. I will never forget that face, and I will I never forget that accident.  
Driving is a beautiful gift that allows us so many opportunities to make a living, go on once in a lifetime vacations, and visit our loved ones. However, it's a privilege that can also be a death sentence. This tragic fact is why driver's education is so important. The in-class and on-the-road training it provides dramatically reduces the number of children who will lose fathers or mothers, the number of parents who will receive life-changing knocks on their doors in the middle of the night, and the number of graves that someone will dig due to automobile accidents.



Driving is a skill humans must learn, which is why driver education is so important. To begin with, a driver can only drive safely on the highway if they know the signs that govern driving. The meaning of yield signs, exit signs, intersection signs, speed limit signs, and others are crucial for the safety of the driver and other drivers in the area. Driver's education provides education on these signs so that students know what to expect and do while they are driving.
Driver education also provides extremely valuable on-road driving experience. Author Paulo Coelho states, "Straight roads do not make skillful drivers" (Paulo Coelho). While Coelho's words are accurate, it's also true that dry roads, dirt roads, or barely traveled roads do not make skillful drivers. This is why driver’s education is so beneficial. It provides traffic experiences that new drivers need most: rough weather driving, heavy traffic driving, and driving that involves winding roads or merging.
Driver's education also goes a long way towards making safe driving decisions and actions automatic.  For example, Fay Weldon states that "only one thing registers on the subconscious mind: repetitive application–practice" (Affirmation Quotes).  Experienced drivers put on their seat belts the minute they slam the car door. Experienced drivers see a brake light and automatically slow down. Experienced drivers habitually check their mirrors, look both ways without thinking, and put on their turn signals without conscious thought.
Driver education benefits students because while they are on the road, they have a trusted teacher who reminds them repeatedly to repeat the necessary fundamentals of driving, increasing the chances that new drivers will make safer decisions more instinctively.
Besides learning the rules of the road and hours of practice, there are other things I and other drivers can do to help reduce the number of driving fatalities. 
For example, one way to prevent motor vehicle deaths is by giving the road your total concentration. People can lose concentration in several ways while driving. For instance, teens often drive with several friends in the car.  Music is usually a part of the drive, and the volume of the music or conversation can often take their attention from the road. In addition, there is the most rapidly increasing problem related to driving deaths: texting. All it takes is one second of distraction to increase the likelihood of a motor vehicle tragedy. To avoid this, drivers should make road focus a number one priority. They should work to reduce noise to a reasonable level and put their phones on silent. Even having a friend text or read texts for them can drastically decrease the potential for death.   



Furthermore, one driving practice that lessens automobile deaths is maintaining patience. For example, drivers often get irritated by things that cost them time to reach their desired destination. Things such as slow drivers, traffic jams, or even roadwork can cause them to get angry and make rash, dangerous choices such as speeding. As a matter of fact, the National Safety Council states that "speeding was a factor in 29% of all traffic fatalities in 2022, killing 12,151 or an average of over 33 people on a typical day” (Speeding).  To prevent these situations, drivers should practice leaving early so that enough time is given to reach their destination despite these delays. In addition, it's important to remember that getting to a particular place on time is never as important as keeping yourself and others safe.
Also, it is essential to completely avoid drinking, doing drugs, or any other factors that impair one's ability to be safe on the road. Things such as consuming alcohol, using illegal (and even prescription) substances, and driving when sleep-deprived can result in slowed reflex time, decreased coordination, and poor decision-making.  Driving under these conditions is extremely deadly because these things attack a driver both physically and psychologically, upping the chance of loss of life while driving. To prevent these problems, if you are under the influence or running on lack of sleep, let someone else take the wheel. Even better, determine a designated driver beforehand. If you’re alone, call a trusted friend or parent to pick you up. You might get into trouble, but no lecture or grounding is worth “being in the ground.”
Avoiding motor vehicle deaths not only requires responsible drivers: it requires responsible passengers as well. If your friend tries to drive while exhausted or intoxicated, offer to drive or choose another friend to get behind the wheel. If someone in the car is not wearing a seat belt, ask them to wear it. Also, pay attention to the road. A passenger may get teased for being a "backseat driver," but two sets of eyes are always better than one.
What is often forgotten when discussing automobile deaths is what onlookers can do. For example, if you are riding in a car and see signs of reckless or impaired driving, you should call 911 immediately. If you see a traffic accident that has already happened, it is crucial to call 911 as well. The sooner police and other emergency personnel are alerted, the greater the chance that fatalities will not occur.  
Of course, there are many new car features and wonderful apps that also one can use to make driving safer. For example, parents can utilize programs that monitor their children’s location while driving and alert them to things such as when their teens engage in hard braking, texting, and speeding. Knowing that their parents are aware of when they engage in these dangerous activities can make young drivers extra careful.
Robert K. Whitman states: “Art thieves steal more than beautiful objects; they steal memories and identities. They steal history” (Goodreads).  The same is true of motor vehicle accidents. They steal futures, graduation robes, and wedding gowns. They steal hopes, dreams, and joy, just as they did for Dustin, the first man I saw die. That's why it is so important to be a safe driver. Robbing a human being of the precious gift of life is the worst crime of all.