Life Happens Fast
I must have been around 8 or 10. My brother was playing soccer in an Oklahoma tournament when it was announced that the fire department had been called to a vehicle fire in the parking lot. The vehicle was our family van.
I’m very thankful the car caught fire in the parking lot, and not while my family was driving on the highway. I hadn’t gone to Oklahoma for this tournament, but saw the aftermath back home a few days later. It was a mess. Everything was covered with soot. The inside was almost completely unrecognizable. I remember being upset about the toys (now ruined) I left in the van. How selfish. The cause of the fire was some sort of mechanical error. Of course, everyone was relieved that no one was hurt. A van is a van, but our family’s safety is the most important thing.
Years later, I started driving. I had my first accident early in my driving career. I was 15. My learner’s permit allowed me to drive alone to school or work. It would be about a year until I had my first job, scooping custard at a 50's themed drive-through, so I just used the permit to drive 3 miles down 10th street to school. Probably the first chance I had I took my friend’s out with the car during lunch. We drove to Sonic, blasting music and enjoying the new found freedom. Everything was going great until we drove back to school.
We were late for class. I saw a spot near the front of the school and drove towards it, not seeing another car lurching to the same spot. I guess they didn’t see me either. We collided. No one was hurt. The person driving the other car was also 15 and also taking their friends out to lunch. Very shaken, I called my parents. They were happy no one was hurt, but of course they were also mad at the poor decisions I made. I was grounded for a long time and didn’t drive with anyone else in the car until I legally could. We had a long talk about responsibility.
I urge you to check your car for recalls, and reinforce safe driving habits with your family. Life happens fast. I was defiantly a hard headed 15-year-old, but most of the time I listened to family when they told me something important.
