Intuition

• What is the importance of driver education in reducing the number deaths as a result of driving?

• What steps can be taken to reduce the number of deaths related to driving?

• Have you ever had an experience of being in car accident or have seen your friends or family members driving irresponsibly?

• What steps can you take to be a better and safer driver as well as help others become safer on the road?

It was another day at school. It was still early in the morning, the sky had barely started to turn bright, yet students have already begun flooding into the school. As I walked around in the hallways, greeting my friends and striking conversations about how their morning was going, I was actively searching for one specific person. One person that had been on my mind all morning. The sweetest, cutest, smartest, and the person I most wanted to talk to: my boyfriend!

He had recently just gotten his driver’s license and was taking turns with his older sister on who would be the one driving to school and that morning it was his turn. I excitingly waited for his arrival so that I can finally ask him how his morning was, and we would roam the halls until the bell rang, just like every other morning. I checked my phone and saw that he was particularly late than usual, and he hasn’t responded to my texts which is normal since he might’ve woken up late again or the traffic near the school was especially bad that day. I continue making small conversations and check my phone every other minute checking the time and awaiting a ding from my phone. 7:45 am. Five minutes until first period starts. 7:46 am. Perhaps he’s just very very late today. 7:47 am. He should’ve arrived to school by now since it takes some time to walk to his class that’s all the way on the second floor. 7:48 am. I now enter my class as I can’t wait for him any longer. 7:49 am. I check my phone one final time before I have to put my phone away. Nothing. 7:50 am. Final bell and class begins.

For some weird reason, my brain started imagining away that something terrible most have happened like a car crash and perhaps the love of my life is now dead. After a grueling and frustrating first period, I anxiously pick up my phone and hope that I see a little red dot above my message app. There is. I don’t think I’ve ever clicked on anything faster than at that moment when I slam my finger onto my phone. A message reminding me to renew my phone plan. Thanks Lycamobile, you really know how to lift my spirits up.

After homeroom, I finally received the message I had been awaiting. The message read: “can we meet rn?”. I rushed out of my homeroom with a pit in my stomach because even through text I could tell that something serious had happened. When I saw him, I could tell immediately that he had been crying since his eyes were crimson red and my intuition turned out to be half right. Obviously he is not dead but on our way to our next class that we actually had shared, he told me how he had been driving that morning and that as he was turning, he didn’t see the oncoming car because a fence had blocked his view. I could still visibly tell that he was shaken, and I ended up helping him to ask our chemistry teacher if he could be excused and go to the guidance office.

While in my personal experience no deaths have occurred from car accidents, I’ve definently heard and seen plenty of car accidents on the news and in my community of how students from a couple years prior had died to a car accident in my neighborhood. The importance of driver education is one that should not be taken lightly since literal lives are at risk every time we choose to be on the road. We entrust our lives not only to the driver of the vehicle we are in but to every driver on the road that they will obey and follow safe traffic practices.

It seems like a no brainer but seatbelts are definitely the best way we can keep people safe on the road and to reduce the amount of deaths related to diving. My boyfriend told me later on how thankful he was that everyone in the car had been wearing their seatbelts that day because the car had been launched out into the nearby field because of the large amount of force and impact. Obviously there are also other ways to be safe such as not being on your phone which my dad does not follow. The amount of times my brother and I have brought this up to him but he still doesn’t change his ways worries me but there is nothing we can do because he believes so highly of his driving skills. For me, the most important things are to always wear your seatbelt and to put away anything that could potentially distract you from driving. Once you can do that, inform and spread the word to others.