We Should Be.

She doesn’t even see him coming. She turns too quickly—no, wait, was she speeding? It’s all such a blur; it happens too fast. Maybe she’s rushing to get somewhere? No, she isn’t; she isn’t rushing at all. In fact, it’s the exact opposite. She took it out for a relaxing ride; she never rushes when she’s driving. She used to, but becoming a mother has changed her. Maybe she wasn’t wearing her seatbelt then. She was, though. The bruises on her chest and neck prove it. She wouldn’t dare; she knows how dangerous it can be. She knows.

So was it the other driver’s fault? Maybe he was drunk? No, he couldn’t have been. He’d never drink and drive, especially not on the job. Especially not in the eighteen wheeler. So he wasn’t looking where he was going? It happens, but no, not to him. So what, then? How did this happen? He was tired. Maybe he fell asleep behind the wheel? He wouldn’t dare; he knows how dangerous it can be. He knows.

Does any of it matter? To us, absolutely; that’s not even a question. To her seven-year-old twins that just lost their mom? No. To the husband who fell to his knees at work after getting the devastating phone call? Maybe, but he can’t even process her death right now, let alone find out how.

Does any of this sound familiar? It should—accidents like this happen every single day.

Did that make you upset? Are you sad? Angry? Scared? Maybe you should be; I’m sad. I’m angry. I’m scared. It happens though; and it’s not a movie, not a commercial. We don’t get to cry and then look up the acting credits later to see who played “mother involved in accident #2.” We don’t get to shrug and say, “that’s life,” only to forget that anything ever happened the very next minute.

Driver’s education is not just important. It is a necessity. Who are we to brush off a teenager’s fear of driving a two ton chunk of metal down the highway at fifty miles per hour? Who are we to look on in disappointment at the kids driving downtown without seatbelts while our kids in the back wear theirs incorrectly anyway? Who are we to have, ‘oh, just one or two glasses, please,’ and then drive home, only to be surprised when we see the rate of accidents caused by drunk driving? No driver has that right; we all have to learn that people die because of these reasons.

All drivers should be taught that wearing seatbelts is one of the easiest ways to reduce the amount of fatalities in an accident. All drivers should know that impaired driving due to drinking kills thousands. We should be taught these things and more.

The steps to take to reduce the number of deaths? Let’s stop allowing students to pass through driver’s ed classes, simply so that teachers don’t have to ‘deal with them again.’ Let’s stop overworking truck drivers, even though they ‘seem fine.’ Let’s stop telling our kids that it’s fine if they don’t want to wear a seatbelt on a long road trip. Let’s stop making excuses every time an accident happens.

“He doesn’t usually drive this recklessly.”

“I don’t know what’s gotten into her, Officer, she never drives this way when I’m in the car.”

What if there were laws in place to keep all drivers more cautious? Cameras that are always recording, that can be used against the driver in any accidents. I can name five people right now that would drive slower, that would actually use turn signals, that wouldn’t weave through lanes every two minutes. What if phones had to be placed out of sight, only used in emergencies, where even then, the driver would have to pull over?

I take many of these steps to become a better driver myself. I have a camera that is one every time I step foot into my vehicle. I pick one playlist on my phone, turn the ringer off, and put it in the passenger seat. There are other things that I do to, and I suggest that others follow these simple tricks, including: practicing actively moving my head and eyes, looking from mirror to mirror, side to side, always aware of my surroundings, and also always attentive to avoid highway hypnosis on long drives. I keep my music volume to a lower level, and if I become confused or lost, I help myself focus on my vision by turning down the music, so I receive no auditory input, and I even turn down my air or heat, so that sensory detection becomes lower, and it helps me to focus.

There are always going to be annoying parts of driving, especially when I am the only passenger, and I can only rely on myself. In the end though, I would rather be a safe driver than a dead driver.