Please God, I'm only 17

The day I died was an ordinary school day. How I wish I had taken the bus! But I was too cool for the bus. I remembered how I wheedled the car out of Mom. “Special favor,” I pleaded, “all the kids drive.”

When the 2:50 bell rang, I threw all my books in the locker. I was free until 8:40 tomorrow morning! I ran to the parking lot, excited at the thought of driving a car and being my own boss. FREE!

It doesn’t matter how the accident happened. I was goofing off -- going too fast. Taking crazy chances. But I was enjoying my freedom and having fun. The last thing I remember was passing an old lady who seemed to be going awfully slow. I heard the deafening crash and felt a terrific jolt. Glass and steel flew everywhere. My whole body seemed to be turning inside out. I heard myself scream.

Suddenly, I awakened; it was very quiet. A police officer was standing over me. Then I saw a doctor. My body was mangled; I was saturated with blood. Pieces of jagged glass were sticking out all over. Strange that I couldn’t feel anything.

Hey, don’t pull that sheet over my head. I can’t be dead. I’m only 17; I’ve got a date tonight. I am supposed to grow up and have a wonderful life. I haven’t lived yet. I can’t be dead.

Later I was placed in a drawer. My parents had to identify me. Why did they have to see me like this? Why did I have to look at Mom’s face when she faced the most terrible ordeal of her life? Dad suddenly looked like an old man. He told the man in charge, "Yes, he is my son."

The funeral was a weird experience. I saw all my relatives and friends walk toward the casket. They passed by, one by one, and looked at me with the saddest eyes I’ve ever seen. Some of my buddies were crying. A few of the girls touched my hand and sobbed as they walked away.

Please...somebody...wake me up! Get me out of here. I can’t bear to see my Mom and Dad so broken up. My grandparents are so racked with grief they can barely walk. My brother and sisters are like zombies. They move like robots. In a daze, everybody! No one can believe this. I can’t believe it either.

Please don’t bury me! I’m not dead! I have a lot of living to do! I want to laugh and run again; I want too sing and dance. Please don’t put me in the ground. I promise if you give me just one more chance, God, I’ll be the most careful driver in the whole world. All I want is one more chance.

Please God, I’m only seventeen.

 

Thats pretty depressing bro...

 

This is a strange one PAX but when i read it it brought back memories of when my wifes brother was killed on his motorbike nearly 30yr ago now :cry, he was only 20yrs old, he was married in the november had his birthday in the january he was tragically killed in the february and his son who now lives in dallas texas was born in the march, crazy eh ! birth death and a marriage all in one all by himself as my wife says now, but if thing's are set out for you thats how it is !
So make the most of what you have while your here as sometimes it's not for very long !

 

I read that article in a Readers Digest when I was in my teens. It was shortly after my bad accident, that luckily I was unhurt in.

Yeah, it's depressing, but it's not the most comfortable topic in the world. I think everyone should read it, It's stuck with me for a decade and then some, so I thought I'd share it.

http://i55.photobucket.com/albums/g156/schnypa/Honda.jpg

 

Yeah, Pax, I read that years ago, and it stuck with me too... Is that the car you were in? YOU are a Lucky one, for sure!

There is another one of a motorcycle, I'll see if I can find it.... I think it is a sobering, must read for any teen just getting their driving license ..

Rusty is right, too, you have today, and tomorrow is NOT promised.. There may be a tomorrow, there may not be, so do what you can, before you run out of tomorrows...

 

You know? There are always stories that teens are terrible drivers, that they take risks and chances they shouldn't. I don't believe any of it, because I look at the 'experienced' drivers. The ones racing at full speed, talking on phones and doing makeup, often all three at once. Don't assume that the accident is the fault of the driver just because the driver is young.

I'm terrified of driving, not because of the younger drivers, but because of the older ones, the ones who don't think about driving. I'm terrified that at any moment, some jerk in a business suit, chattering pointlessly on his phone and not paying attention is going to hit me.

 

http://i254.photobucket.com/albums/hh118/watchntv1978/121313.jpg

 

pretty freakin' rare

when I get passed or deal with some crappy driver, 99/100 it's a female...

 

I'll bet there are a lot of lady drivers here...:-D

 

Please don't bring up the thread I made a few months ago about my totaled car...!

Oh crap. :banghead

 

when i read this it reminded me of this song by pearl jam
" http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J_sEtNrYlC4 "

 

Yeah, I remember that song very well. Here's the original for those of you that never heard it http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lMuWmC5urcI&feature=related

 

Oh, Mimsy, I wasn't referring to that, but this:

 

I know, I know... LOL

Every woman I know who is a poor driver is a poor driver because she believes she has a super-natural talent for multitasking. She thinks she can drive through rush-hour traffic with all her attention on the animated conversation she's having with the person in the passenger seat because women are naturally superior when it comes to doing two things at once.

Which of course is a complete and total lie. Focus on your driving, woman! We can talk later. :mad

 

I must say you are totally correct.
so many reports about being dying while texting and the last 2 bad drivers were women on their cells...not even texting but talking...
I keep both hands on the wheel, belt fastened and actively look at my mirrors.....yes, I usually do over the speed, but I don't cut people off,, I don't stay in fast lane when someone is behind me and wanting to go faster, I signal, and I mere on/off traffic without slowing down traffic.
my last speeding ticket?
in early 1990s

 

The signal for passing someone, or changing lanes.... Flashing your headlights at them, not turn signals.. Suppose we all knew that? LOL

 

I learned the hard way that irresponsible driving is not only dangerous but very selfish (think of the injuries to the other party in the accident)

This is a post of mine from Jan 2007, many older members will have seen it but newer members beware, There are consequences that come with accidents.

http://forums.majorgeeks.com/showthread.php?t=129803&highlight=DRINK+DRIVE&page=2

 

You know, I'm hearing about how bad the women drivers and, to an extent, that's true. However, the person that destroyed the best car I ever owned was a MAN with a cell phone stuck in his face! The car was a 1986, red, 300ZX that I had totally restored over the span of 12 years. I stopped at a red light, but he was too busy on the phone and hit me doing 45 MPH! He was in a Ford F-150 and got a sore knee...I got 27 staples and countless stitches in my head where my scalped peeled back! So true, women aren't that great at driving and talking, but men are just as bad!

 

While women are actually better equipped for multitasking, meaning the two sides of their brain interact better than a mans, i read somewhere that men actually view their vehicle as an extension of their body. Women view it as an outside, disconnected tool. Just a study i read about though. Not saying its scientific fact or anything...

 

Statistically, being that there are more women as men on the planet, it makes sense that they'd more often be at fault for an accident. I mean, lots more rabbits are hit than elephants, you know? I don't think it's right to say one is more at fault than the other, there's just more of one.

 

This help to put it in prospective, male versus female.

http://editorial.autos.msn.com/article.aspx?cp-documentid=788126

 

Okay - safer/cautious does not mean better car control
I'm a sucker for stats...but :-D

 

{From link in post #22}

Probably so, especially when it comes to women and parking 'dings'. Males tend to take higher risks and as a consequence worse accidents, but then again, when it comes to road rage incidents some of the worst I've experienced have come from women :eek. Guess with equal rights, comes equal rage.:crybaby

 

I have seen road rage, Phantom, by more men, than women, but I think the worst thing now, is the cell phones and texting.. I wish they would make it illegal to have a cell phone even visible when one is driving... I have seen myself, both men and women with cell phones stuck to their ear, just NOT paying attention at all to their driving.. Good thing I am paying attention, or else I would have been planted a long time ago...

Intersections are the worst, they just don't pay attention.. I am not saying it is all men, but both equally.. whether they are teens or middle aged, they have just GOT to have that phone stuck to their heads.....rolleyes

I have a cell phone too, BUT mine is in my purse, and is for an emergency should I have the need for it.... Not just chatting along....

 

Ya, call me old-fashioned if you want, but my car cellphones are for breakdowns or emergencies. If you're driving, then drive - don't talk. It's not a difficult concept. rolleyes
I have dedicated cells for business and private. They stay where they belong - at home. Way I figure it, if it's important they can ring back and/or leave a message. If it's not important, or sales junk, then I probably don't care much whether I've missed them call or not.

On a quasi-note, I get irritated by the amount of people walking into me in shopping malls, because they are busy texting or yapping on that stupid brain-drain box we call cellphones. :mad I love technology, I was a geek years before it became trendy, but I hate inconsiderate idjits! Maybe I'm just becoming grouchy in my old age. LOL

 

Yeah, Phantom, I think you hit the nail on the head! Old fashioned, no, SMART, yes! I don't take my cell out of my purse. There is a term for those "Inconsiderate Idiots" and that is "II"! I too am annoyed by them, and they just seem to have no concept that they are NOT the only person in the store... "II" for sure! Heck, half of them don't NOTICE that their purse is in the child section of the cart half an isle away.... Or that their children run all over the place, and THEY don't notice... Yup, I must agree with you on this one, so if you are old fashioned, so am I

 

My girls used to get so mad at me for not letting them ride with their friends. "They have a license", like it made a difference. Turned out most of them were in bad accidents some died.
Now that they have children of driving ages they understand.
At the flower shops we would add MADD cards to the corsages at prom time. Some came back and said it made a difference, parents liked that also.

 

the sky is blue, so women are should be better drivers..

too bad they aren't

http://www.motifake.com/demotivational-poster/0808/jesus-facepalm-facepalm-jesus-epic-demotivational-poster-1218659828.jpg

 

dont know how it works else where but here in aus it is illegal to operate a mobile phone whilst driving, if caught its a $200 + fine and 3 points off your drivers license.it is seen to be as bad as driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs.

 

That is great, iwunderdownunder, I sure do hope they do the same here someday SOON!

@ watchntv: When you said,

I sure hope you weren't speaking of ALL women.. I never had a ticket in my life. thankfully, no accidents either... I take driving VERY seriously, and so should anyone else who is out on the road, REGARDLESS of their sex... a vehicle can be just as dangerous as a gun... Anyone can pull that trigger.
I just don't think it fair, to single out women drivers as bad, no more than it would be for me to post how bad men drivers are... No difference..:innocent

 

It might not be an extension of me, but it's certainly a partner on the road. Ever rode a horse? Same thing... There's two-way communication going on when you drive, and if you treat the car like a trusted partner and friend, then it will respond accordingly.

Yes, I have been know to brush a hand lightly across the dashboard and mumble, "come on, just this once... you know I love you" when the car refuses to start. And it worked, every time.

*aligns cross-hairs*

Don't worry TeeCee, I got him covered. :major

 

It is here also, the trick is catching them.

 

yes that's the same here but if you have an accident and it is proven that you were using your mobile it renders your insurance invalid so any compensation for repairs or injury falls back on the person who caused the incident.that would turn out to be a pretty expensive phone call or text.

 

Hey Mimsy, holler if you need some rope to help hold him still! :major

@ iwunder: That must stop a LOT of texting... Sure would make the roads a tad safer, too.

 

There's been some horrible accidents in California due to texting. Big ones, a commuter train, big rigs, like that.