This fall break my roommate and I drove south on Interstate 5 from Portland to Eugene, Oregon. During the two hour drive, I began to notice how people relate differently to the environment provided by their cars. Some of the drivers appeared uneasy, and as if they were holding on for dear life. It was as if they had more awareness of their surroundings, than I did, and were thus less comfortable with the high speed situation. Then, there were those drivers (like myself) who were clearly enjoying their own little ecosystem. They were jamming out to their various musical preferences, and at ease with the movements of those around them.
For the most part though, everyone on the road had one common goal: their destination. Why is it that Highway Driving is so impersonal now days? Didn't driving used to serve a purpose (getting where you want to go) while being an enjoyable sort of vacation? The fact of the matter is that society has sped up. Road trips, once a great pastime of the United States, have become less experienced and more dreaded activities.
There are simple reasons why driving is no longer as attractive to us as it used to be. 1) The price of gas 'drives' many of us away from these sorts of trips. 2) It is now cheaper to fly some places, and the time saved is very attractive. People rarely drive for the simple pleasure of getting out on the road and enjoying themselves. Driving is, now more than ever, strictly about getting where you are trying to go. There is no time taken to mingle in 'small town' America. The attractions that used to force us to pull over and spend a few dollars, worth of time and money, no longer grab us and lure our attention.
Driving is a tool. It has lost its beauty and charm for most of us.
If there is one thing for certain about driving, it is that it provides us the opportunity to sit back and think. One can learn a lot about themselves from just driving. It helps build patience, and gives us time to learn to feel content with ourselves.
Oh my, how I'm glad I enjoy to Drive!
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2 comments:
i disagree i think driving is the only personal thing left in this world. its the only time that you actually have to be around others. you have to deal with people, rude people slow people ideots etc and you have to work with total strangers in order to arrive at your destination alive. every thing else can be done over the internet
i think it is important that driving not be the only personal thing in life. if there is no time to spent around others, we have to allow that time and space to occur.
i disagree that "every thing" can be done over the internet, because there is a humanistic aspect to life that the internet cannot convey.
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