Name: Laura Menlove
From: Salt Lake City, Utah
Votes: 0
Pull
It and “Click It”
Pull
and “click”, the first thing I do when I get in my car is pull
and click, then just like that my seatbelt is on. By doing this I
just reduced my risk of death by 45%. How did I learn this? In
drivers ed class I learned to get in the habit of fastening
the seat belt. If drivers and their passengers will take the short
simple step of buckling up their seat belts, it will reduce the
number of deaths as a result of driving.
It’s
unfortunate that more than 90 people die each and every day in
driving related accidents. My family knows this tragedy firsthand as
years ago my Aunt Kristine and her new husband Mike were not wearing
seatbelts when they were involved in a car accident. Kristine and
Mike met in college and fell in love, soon the two where engaged and
happily married. The entire family celebrated with them at their
wonderful wedding party. The very next day the newlywed couple hopped
in their car and drove away heading south on Interstate 15 departing
for a fun and romantic honeymoon on the beach in sunny California.
Tragically they failed to fasten their seatbelts, a large truck
swerved on the freeway and hit them killing Mike instantly and
critically injuring Kristine. The two never made it to their dream
California honeymoon. It is the saddest thing that our family has
ever had to experience. Often, we wish if only they had been wearing
seat belts then maybe things would have been different. This
experience continues to serve as a powerful reminder to us that
wearing seat belts is a must.
Other
steps to reduce driving deaths include; slowing down, staying focused
while driving and never texting! Everyone is always rushing to get to
their destination and distractions are everywhere, but if you want to
actually arrive safely then we must stop speeding, get focused, and
never look at texts while driving. Speeding causes 30% of driving
deaths. Slow down everyone, it will save lives. Almost every day we
risk our life getting in a car with someone that has a cell phone.
Whether it is your parents, friends, siblings or even yourself, you
are 23 times more likely to crash while texting and driving.
To
be a better driver I will slow my speed and put away distractions.
Out of love and concern for others, I will remind others to not text
and drive at the same time I commit not to text and drive myself.
Equally important, because lives are on the line, I will buckle up
and ask others to do the same with a pull and “click”. We can
reduce driving related deaths by remembering to pull it and “click”
it.
