No Backing Out
Dear Daddy:
You seem like such a crusty old bird, always criticizing one thing or another. Do you ever have a positive thought?
No Negs, Please
Dear No Negs:
Hey, laughing is positive, and I get a lot of laughs myself out of exposing the follies of the church and the churched. The only more ridiculous group in the U.S. is that group composed of everybody else.
In the spirit of positiveness, however, let me make this column a true Public Service Announcement -- Bi-Partisan.
Take heed all you self-professed "Pro-Lifers" you may actually save a life if you practice what I am going to preach now. You won't necessarily know it though -- so you will just have to proceed on faith.
Since I began driving a car (in the 60's) I have been a steadfast practitioner of what may well be done by only the tiniest slice of the population, but which can save lives, prevent injury and save millions of bucks worth of property damage.
I try to avoid parking in such a way that will cause me to have to back out of my parking place. Especially at home.
At the typical home, when one is returning, all one has to do is pull up a little farther than his driveway, and sweep the area with his eyes -- amazing how the movement of your vehicle gives you a true 3-D picture of the area. You are able to see if your or your neighbor's children are out and about -- where the tricycles are, etc. Back your vehicle in then, and when you later leave this parking place, you should walk around the front of your car, making sure no one is there, and drive out onto the roadway safely -- not backing out into oncoming traffic. Maybe not backing into me as I pass by.
So simple -- so effective. Never taught. Not thought about by most -- until tragedy strikes.
I did a little research, and found that a little over a hundred children are killed in the U.S. each year by being backed over by a car, mostly by their parents and grandparents, in their driveways.
Most are 2 to 6 years old.
We had this happen here in my town in the last year or so -- to a family that goes to my church. In fact, it involved two families that go to my church.
Nice little cul-de-sac, a little boy -- about 6 -- sitting on his tricycle in his own driveway waved at his neighbor when he was leaving his house across the street getting into his station wagon, to back out into the cul-de-sac, like he had done thousands of times.
Only this time, the little boy decided he would ride over and see his friend, who was a teacher at the Christian school where the little boy was in first grade. He usually rode to and from the school with his teacher/friend.
But the teacher/friend/neighbor didn't see the little fellow as he rode up behind the station wagon -- and he crushed him to death.
Two families, and the grandparents, and siblings -- oh, so distraught. A precious little life snuffed out -- accidentally.
But so avoidable.
Ever notice when you drive by -- that at car dealers where they have a lot full of cars -- you will seldom see the rear ends of them -- they usually face them all out toward the street?
Car butts aren't that cute. Why do you face your car butt toward all your neighbors across the street -- and me as I drive by your house? You didn't build your nice looking house so it faced the back alley, did you?
Park safely. Kill 100 fewer kids per year. Maybe your own.
Daddy
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