How can we teach our kids the behavior we want from them if we don’t model our expectations? Whether it’s treating people with kindness and empathy, being a good friend, or putting down our phone when we’re driving, we’re our child’s first teacher.
It still shocks me how many people I see holding a cell phone while they’re driving even though it’s against the law in our state. Sometimes these drivers are alone. Sometimes they have kids in the car with them and I wonder what the kids think, if they are among the 75% of teens who say texting and driving is common among their friends. Are they talking to their kids about texting and driving?
The statistics don’t lie. Texting while driving is an epidemic that causes 100,000 crashes per year. Many fatal. Many others with life altering consequences that no family wants to face.
That split second of taking attention away from the road to look at your phone to type a text has affected so many individuals. A new documentary directed by acclaimed filmmaker Werner Herzog highlights the aftermath of texting and driving. The “From One Second to the Next” focuses on the stories of four individuals who have been involved or caused a texting and driving accident.
In the short film, Herzog expands on the stories he tells through the 30-second “Texting & Driving … It Can Wait” spots launched this past May. Through his work, he’s given a voice to the individuals who caused the accidents and the many people whose lives have forever been changed by them by showing the devastating aftermath created when a driver turns their attention to a single text. The documentary is available on ItCanWait.com and AT&T’s YouTube channel where you can find it and the other stories from drivers and victims of texting and driving accidents.
Watch it today. Share it with your children, their friends, and fellow parents. Let’s model proper behavior for our kids so they learn #ItCanWait. Texting while driving is never ok.
Image of man texting in the car in collage courtesy of mrJasonWeaver via Flickr. I am being compensated by AT&T for my involvement in the It Can Wait 100 Days Campaign. All opinions are my own.
