This title sounds so serious, and it is. Every time I grab my keys and leave the house, my mom tells me that I have one responsibility: to come back home to her. At first, it annoyed me that she was being dramatic and not letting me grow up. Then I began to see things from her perspective, remembering the lessons and even sad stories I heard in my driver education class.

As teens, we think we are invincible and nothing bad can or will happen to us. Unfortunately, this thinking can carry over to teen drivers. Not realizing the level of responsibility that driving carries can be a huge mistake. This is where really paying attention to driver education classes and taking it seriously comes in. These classes are extremely important in giving new, not just teen, drivers a broad view of how to be safe on the road for others and yourself. The skills and habits you learn in these classes have a cumulative effect because they stay with you over the course of your “driving life”. These skills become second nature and result in motor vehicle deaths being prevented year in and year out. Driver education classes prepare you to follow road safety guidelines and to avoid distractions, while also being accountable if you break the rules. These simple practices can truly reduce automobile deaths, if they are followed carefully.

To appreciate the full privilege of driving, being safe is key. Ensuring your vehicle is maintained properly (safe tires, sound mechanics, enough gas), wearing your seatbelt and making sure passengers wear theirs, and obeying the speed limit and traffic rules are small steps you can take to keep everyone on the road safe. Not using your phone while you drive and not being distracted by others in or even outside the car are key as well. It’s amazing how distracting a billboard can be, but you cannot stare at things while you drive, you have to stay focused. This is how everyone will do what my mom says: come home safely.

I am thankful that I have never been in a car accident and my family has not had a serious accident. I intend to pursue criminology in some form after college. As a result of my anticipated career path, I have a keen interest in law enforcement and even traffic accidents. I am shocked at the type of destruction that driving irresponsibly causes. I study online videos of various accident scenes and always tell my friends to drive safely and not be reckless. The stakes are just too high for a short moment of poor judgement to result in a catastrophe.

I admit that I am not a perfect driver, but I am a safe driver. At times, I can have a lead foot and exceed the speed limit. This is definitely something that I need to work on and will be mindful of when I am speeding going forward. I also admit that I do not know a lot about cars and rely on my parents to make sure my car is in good working condition. I am not very interested in cars, but I know that it is important to at least know about MY car. I think it would be a nice bonding opportunity to ask my Granddad to teach me a few things so that I can show greater responsibility and do my part to keep me and others safe on the road. I can also help my friends be safer by sharing what I learn with them and encourage them to reach out to their family members for automobile tips.

It seems weird to combine my mom’s daily message with driver education, but they really go hand-in-hand. In driver education, I was taught to be safe, act safe, and think safe. I was taught to pay attention to more than just myself – meaning watch out for other drivers and especially pedestrians. Now when I head out the door, I think about my mom’s words to me, and I also think about all the other moms who want their loved ones to just come home safe. This reminder is all I need to think twice about risky behavior that could harm me or someone else. Now I understand why my driver education teacher and my mom were so serious about me (and everyone else) driving. I take it as my personal mission to allow everyone I come into contact with on the road, to make it home safely.