My Neighborhood Watch #84 - Reporting Events Around us

It was a usual morning, having woken up for work, the brilliant sun already busily stirring streets, and everything was so typical of a daily morning. Little did I know, it was going to be very different-a car accident that everybody was talking about.

A lady was driving a small car, I noticed while walking along the road, and even felt that she was a little nervous, which afterwards appeared to be the first trip on the tar road. Later on, she make it known that she just got her license and wanted to immediately feel what it is like to drive in real traffic.

She was doing fine, driving slowly, being extremely cautious to keep within the lane. The next thing that happened, this Keke-three-wheel transportation car-came doing a flyover around the bend. This Keke driver had to be in a hurry because he was running late for probably his next pick-up.

In a moment, Keke collided with the woman's car. It wasn't that high-speed crash, but it was shaking enough. The lady's car had scratches and dents here and there, while the Keke front bumper just went a little bent. Mercifully, no one was injured.

People ran from all directions, asking what was happening. The lady came out of her car, really shaken. The Keke driver looked quite irritated than anything; he glanced to make sure his vehicle wasn't damaged, turned to the lady.

"What were you thinking?" he asked, exasperation and fear entirely laced in his voice.

"I am so sorry," the woman replied, almost trembling. "This is my first time driving on this road. I didn't see you coming."

The atmosphere was really charged, yet the most unexpected thing happened: instead of being further angry, Keke driver softened down. He could feel how scared the lady was, and that yelling won't get him anywhere.

"Hey, it's all right," he said in softer tones. "Accidents do happen. Nobody got injured, and that is the good part."

The lady nodded, wiping away a tear. She looked relieved the situation was defusing. Meanwhile, the small crowd which had built up started to disperse since they realized there wasn't really an emergency.

On the crowd, a middle-aged man with a kind face, approached the lady. “Don’t worry,” he said reassuring the lady and making her feel a little better. “We all have our first time on the road. You’ll get better with practice.”

The lady smiled; somehow, she felt a sense of solidarity. She took a deep breath and thanked them all for being considerate; even the Keke driver was willing to help with the insurance stuff and exchanged numbers before they parted ways.

The more I walked to work, the more this incident occupied my mind. It was just a perfect example of how a probably stressful situation can be handled with empathy and kindness. Obviously, both drivers were stressed, but they kept cool and resolved the situation without further problems.

It further made me reflect on my patience with new drivers. To the driver, it starts sometime and sometimes the mistakes form part of it. The drive in the tar road initially was not up to expectation on the lady's part but in the end turned out some good lessons in dealing with unforeseen eventualities.

I finally got to work and told the incident to my colleagues. All were interested, and it triggered a very lively discussion about their driving experiences. Some of them described similar first-time driving stories filled with nerves and mishaps. That was a point that proved to me that we are all humans and maybe sometimes relate to each other more than we actually think.

But by sundown, it had become neighborhood news, as quite a few carried the story among themselves. Indeed, the calm and responsible attitudes of the drivers in the accident moved the hearts of many. Indeed, it bonds the community and reminds every one of us to be patient enough and understanding with the people around us.

Conclusion

Indeed, this car accident was an eye-opener. It has proved to me that there's a big role of empathy, patience, and community support in our life. While moments of an accident may be stressful, the way we handle it may make a whole lot of difference. Though the lady's first drive on a tar road ended in a small collision, it became a story of kindness and learning that I will never forget.

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I placed my invite to: @waterjoe, @josepha, @kidi40

All pictures are mine

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Cc:
@xkool24