Name: Gabriella C Licona
From: Hialeah, FL
Votes: 0
I
remember the flashes of color blurring my vision, a sudden feeling of
fear creeping through my bones, and the air thickening. I can’t
recall the order of events that took place that day, but I can
remember being paralyzed with fear and feeling as if my life had
flashed right before my eyes in a millisecond. The car didn’t flip
and flop like in the movies but my brother hitting the brakes did
enough damage. I don’t remember the moment the white car appeared
out of thin air and hit the right side of my brother’s car—I can
remember the smell of alcohol from the hospital as the doctors
prodded my bruised leg. The screams of fright from my sister echo in
my ears but I would have done anything to fill the silence in her
hospital room when her neck was wrapped in a brace and she was frozen
in shock.
In
the driver’s seat, there is a sense of responsibility that everyone
must live up to. One blink, one second of looking away, one second
off from reacting: they are all little causes with big effects.
Whether we feel privilege to drive or not, the maturity we hold when
we sit in the driver’s seat can make a big impact on our lives.
Everyone is aware of the dangers of the streets. We know that texting
and driving or forgetting to use our signals can lead to a deadly
accident, but we never think that we’ll be a victim. When we
acknowledge the consequences of unsafe driving, it’s important that
we hold that knowledge to us every time we climb into our vehicles.
When we teach ourselves to stay alert, we even lower the risk of
possible accidents that can be caused by someone else.
The
little things we do always make a difference: turning on our signals
for every turn will remind a lazy driver to do the same. The time we
spend driving by the speed limit on an empty highway will teach a
dangerous driver to take precautions. We think that by doing the
opposite once or twice, no one can get hurt. But the truth is, anyone
at any moment can get hurt. The way we drive and the way we show our
understanding of safe driving can save a life. The efforts and focus
we put into our Drivers ed courses/lessons imprint the safe
information we need to know in our brains. Real leaders drive safe by
being inspirational figures for others. When we inspire people one by
one, save a life one by one, change someone’s bad habits on the
streets one by one, we help build a safer world.
