The huge responsibility of driving

I decided to write about my experience in light of the huge debate that is going on right now over the Johor accident case.

When I got my first driver’s licence as handicapped driver, I was taught to be a “defensive driver”.

What that meant was to follow the traffic rules meticulously.

Keep to the speed limits. Slow down at corners; the sharper it turns, the slower you go.

The most dangerous part is when you have poor visibility or lose it altogether. 

Be very careful when driving at night and especially in the wee hours of the morning when roads are generally empty.

My biggest lesson was to look out for those who break the rules.

This could be anyone, from vulnerable persons like children, elderly, disabled and animals, or stalled vehicles and accidents or uprooted trees in the middle of the road.

I was told to always be alert about my surroundings. And in the more than 30 years that I have been driving, I only ever met with one accident when I knocked into another car in front of a traffic light.

Although I hit the brakes, I didn’t stop in time.

And I wasn’t speeding. 

Fortunately, no one was injured or died except for my ego. It was crushed.

My three dogs in the back seat were briefly shaken up. But they snapped me out of the shock I was in by leaning over and licking my face. 

It was a month or two after I graduated from driving school. 

Driving is a huge responsibility. That’s why I never fail to say a prayer whenever I get in and out of my car.

The views expressed in this article are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the position of MalaysiaNow.