Driving is an activity most people use to travel from places close by. It's quick and efficient, but it can also be dangerous and deadly. If someone was to drive recklessly or under the influence, a person or more could die or be injured as a result. When you're behind the wheel, you're not just responsible for your own life, but for those around you. Impaired driving to me means driving while either being high or drunk. I think if someone took any sort of substance to change their thinking in any way, they would be unfit to drive until they're cleared. I think it can be misunderstood by people since there are cases where people have driven after having a couple drinks or gotten high, and have been fine. The thing is, even if you feel comfortable about driving after taking a substance, you will never know what can happen or how much other drivers are paying attention. I think the type of impaired driving that is most common today is texting. Every time I'm on the road, I see at least a car or two by me with someone texting or doing something on their phone. If someone were to text on their phone while driving, first their mind is multitasking between the phone and driving. Secondly, reaction time slows since they aren't paying full attention to the road. These can drastically affect one's safety in a car. Sometimes, quick brakes or things appearing on the road happen and you need to have the ability to react to those. My grandmother told me about a story about one of her friends who was killed by a drunk driver. They were with their friend on the sidewalk at night when the driver swerved and killed them. Their friend was harmed, but stayed alive. This has always made me think about how drinking and being impaired can have very tragic consequences. Also, with how much my generation uses social media and how much others post, I see driving accidents nearly every day online. I've seen people fall asleep behind the wheel on videos, and I've seen people be hit by impaired drivers. Another story I remember being told is by a youth group leader at my church. He was on his way home when he had a heart attack. His car drove right along a building, then a pond, and finally hit a tree. He wasn't scratched at all. There was so many different obstacles that could have hit him, but he was fine. Even though he couldn't have prevented the heart attack, I think the same thing could happen to people who are distracted or who are under the influence. The only difference is that those impaired had a decision to drive while distracted or after taking a substance. I think most people don't understand that until after they've been in an accident due to either themselves or someone else being impaired. To know that either you or the other driver was on their phone, tired, or had taken a substance and then willingly drove can be very maddening and can make the impaired driver feel so incredibly guilty. I believe driver's education and traffic school courses can deeply change how people drive and think before they start driving if they're impaired in anyway. I remember in my driver's education classes we watched multiple videos on accidents and impaired driving accidents. Every single person who was impaired while driving and harmed or killed someone felt so deeply guilty and mad at themselves. I remember this one highschool student crying after he killed a woman while he was driving impaired. He would have to live with that guilt his whole life because he didn't just change that woman's life, but he changed her entire family's life. I think it's easier for me to think about ruining someone's life in a driving accident because I'm so young and have barely experienced everything I'm going to experience in life. Adults though still need to remember that driving impaired can affect anyone of any age. This I think would help people understand that serious things can happen from actions like drinking and texting, even if you don't think they'll happen. Driving can be unpredictable. With my perspective on impaired driving, I can become a designated driver for my friends in case they need me to drive and I can tell them to turn off their phones while driving so they don't endanger their or others lives.