Pineapples

My mother drilled safe driving into my brothers and I before we were old enough to sit in the front seat. She grew up in a third world country where traffic jams and fender-benders were accepted as normal everyday occurrences. In our rural community, though, severe car accidents were very rare. But that had no effect on how often she talked about awareness while behind the wheel: “you must be like a pineapple, with lots of eyes looking everywhere, all the time”. She quizzed us on the meanings of street signs before we reached our teens. Each time we encountered a near-accident, whether involving us or not, my mother would ask us what the driver(s) could have done differently. She implored us to speak up as a passenger if we were to notice something wrong either in her own driving or in those driving around us. She wanted to ensure we did our best not to become another statistic of driving accidents once we finally got on the road ourselves.

I think my mother did an amazing job teaching us. My brothers joined different military branches and moved to major metropolises. Despite that, they still managed to maintain an accident-free record. I still live in that aforementioned rural community but haven’t so much as received a speeding ticket. Like our mother before us, we have already started teaching our children about road safety; the second the engine turns over, we are all pineapples.

In high school, I remember being shocked how many of my peers have rear-ended someone or gotten a ticket for failing to adhere to the rules of the road. Many of them seemed truly confused at their inability to avoid these– thankfully– minor accidents. They would swear up and down they neither drink nor text while driving. To be fair, the seminars and lectures the school provided were all about avoidance of those two things. So, surely, if they just followed the school’s suggestions of sobriety and put their phones away, then they would be perfect drivers, right?

I could guess the reason behind some of their accidents: no one ever taught them to be a pineapple. Sure enough, when I carpooled with some girls for a senior parade, I witnessed firsthand their lack of awareness. There I was, sitting in the backseat yet paying more attention to our surroundings than the driver. Her eyes did not look everywhere. Her mind was focused on singing the school anthem with the other girls. The parade moved at no more than fifteen miles per hour yet I recall four fender-benders, one of them caused by the driver of the vehicle I was in. There was a lot of excitement and everyone was singing at the top of their lungs but safe driving trumps senior parade every time.

Perhaps those teaching the next generation forget a very important factor: not only do you need to worry about your driving, but you must be on the lookout for subpar driving of others. I’m sure plenty of people have never once ran a red light or overlooked a stop sign. I’m sure there are truly perfect drivers out there. I am equally sure there are people behind the wheel who definitely should not be; people driving under the influence or reading their text messages while going down curvy county roads. Perhaps too many drivers do not know they ought to be conscious of others obeying traffic laws. Maybe these newly licensed teenagers were never taught to ensure cross traffic has stopped before proceeding through a green light. It takes but a second and doing so might save their life.

According to the United States Department of Transportation, drunk-driving related car crashes caused 13,384 deaths in 2021. My cousin Kandra was one of them. It was not the first time she had slid behind the wheel while intoxicated. Despite myself and others lecturing her, she did it. Despite two previous single-car crashes, she did it. Despite losing a dear friend months earlier to drunk-driving, Kandra drove on a windy and poorly maintained county road well past midnight. The passenger, my other cousin and equally as intoxicated, lived though sustained serious injuries. The county sheriff’s office believed Kandra might have made it if she had only worn her seatbelt. My other cousin was properly restrained. Was the decision to forgo her seatbelt that cost Kandra her life? Was it the decision to drive while inebriated? Was it the warnings given by the police instead of DUIIs at both previous drunk-driving accidents? Was it watching both her parents brag about how much “better” they drive while impaired? Every day I miss her and wonder.

I do not know what could have helped my cousin decide to never drink and drive again. I know my surviving cousin hasn’t consumed alcohol since. I know I will do everything I can in the hopes that my other family and friends do not end up another statistic like Kandra. I have shared my cousins’ story because, as mentioned before, my rural community rarely sees fatal accidents. I will forever strive to maintain my perfect driving record. And I will teach whoever will listen about driving as if they are a pineapple.