SGT. 1ST CLASS OTTIS B. CRAWFORD
A Company, 1st Battalion, 7th Field Artillery Regiment
Cleveland, Tennessee
As many parents can relate, having multiple children and the sibling rivalries that go with it can be distracting at times — especially when you’re driving. I pride myself for being very careful when behind the wheel of any vehicle and always ensure every passengers’ seat belt is properly buckled. So, as you can imagine, I was completely beside myself when I, of all people, “Mr. Cautious,” not only got into an accident, but did it with my three young children in the back seat.
There I was, driving down the highway and trying to find a restaurant. It was 11 a.m. and I had just left the fitness center where my children attended swimming lessons. They had worked very hard at their lessons that morning so, of course, they were tired and hungry. Some of you know all too well how that combination results in three very irritable children. Before I took them home for their afternoon nap, I wanted to grab them something quick to eat. I had just spotted a restaurant I thought they’d like when they started yelling at each other, kicking the back of the seats and hollering things like, “Dad, John touched me!”
Between the busy morning, the kids acting up and the heavy traffic flow, you can imagine not only how shot my nerves were at this point, but, more importantly, how distracted I was from the road. We were traveling about 30 mph and traffic was flowing steadily when I turned my head for a split second to tell the kids to cut it out. When I turned my attention back to the road, however, I was shocked to see traffic had come to a stop.
I tried slowing down as much as possible, but immediately realized I wasn’t going to be able to stop, so I pulled into the turning lane to the right in an attempt to avoid rear-ending the vehicle ahead. Unfortunately, I didn’t quite make it, and the front-left corner of my vehicle struck the other vehicle’s right-rear bumper, causing my seat belt to tighten when I jerked forward.
This was the first accident my children had ever been in, so they were terrified. I followed the other driver to the nearest safe location and immediately exited the vehicle to check each of my children for injuries. Satisfied that they were all OK, I then went to the other driver to ensure he hadn’t suffered any injuries.
I called the local police department and asked that they send out an officer so we could file a formal report. As I was giving the officer my statement and insurance information, local paramedics arrived on the scene and double-checked everyone for injuries. Fortunately, the accident had only given us a scare and no one was hurt.
Before leaving the scene, the police officer had a talk with my kids about the importance of not distracting their mother or father while they’re driving. He then pulled me aside to talk about my decision-making once I had realized traffic had stopped. He told me had I not reacted in the manner I did, the accident could have been much worse. He informed me that not only would there have been extensive damage to both vehicles, but all of us would have likely sustained injuries. He left me with a pat on the shoulder and a friendly reminder to drive safely.
There is only one thing that could have prevented this accident. Regardless of the police officer’s opinion about my decisions throughout the course of the accident, the fact of the matter is I should have never taken my eyes off the road. There will always be distractions on the road, but taking your eyes off it for even a split second could result in an accident. I learned this the hard way. Just because we avoided injury this time doesn’t mean we’ll be so lucky in the future. Therefore, Mr. Cautious has now turned into Mr. Extra-Cautious.