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What better place to learn "how to slow down,"
surrender & yield, to be aware of others, and to move
together harmoniously than on our busy highways and city
streets? By practicing the art of driving peacefully in my
car, I'm able to experience a smoother ride on planet Earth
during my other movements through time and space. I'm
also more likely to feel a bit smoother and relaxed in my
own body! (Keep in mind: all space isn't filled up with
hurling objects such as cars on the roads. Some space is
just here.)
As I step out of a flowing / non-hurrying car adventure, I continue to glide along a
little softer & easier as I walk through this world. I feel
it helps me: walk softly and carry NO STICK! In contrast, after I've barreled down the road, bullying others "out of my way," I move with much more heaviness in my physical motions when my car is not surrounding & protecting me.
I'm much more likely to be chomping at the bit with
anxiousness, or want to bite someone's head off at the
slightest provocation. There just has to be a better way to
drive, and not feel so separate & competitive with our
fellow motorists. One idea that recently came to me via my
Inner Teacher on the way driving back from Florida is:
"Look out there as if those other drivers are Beings of
Light traveling to the same destination as yourself!"
With their headlights on, this is real reasonable, since
all I see are those beams of light streaming toward or away
from me.
As my car becomes my temple; my body gets transformed too - becoming a lot lighter as a vehicle through which my mind and spirit express. If my car feels heavy & burdensome to be in, my body is likely to "weigh me down" as well. This metal contraption for moving our fleshly bodies from point A to point B, gives us a sense of freedom from time & space limitations.
If you're like me, and play some music or chants, and tap on
your steering wheel, the ride can be simply magical and
quite euphoric! In case you're interested, I'm putting
together some "Yoga Poses for the Road," and have
discovered that by doing a few lengthening, and twisting
motions while driving long distances, that my body gets a
lot less stiff. I don't know about you, but when I get
stiff, I'm more likely to respond stressfully, and with less
compassion for others.
So, how can our auto-mobiles be seen & used as vehicles for Love to
emanate from? Can you visualize a stream of cars traveling
down the road with something like a rainbow of color
surrounding each one of them? If this is too far out, what
about imagining that each car leaves a stream of invisible
lines conveying whatever feelings that motorist is having?
Who is responsible for teaching & learning these new
perceptions? Is
going "less than the speed limit" a crime, or could a little
bit more of this slow motion art form be helpful?
What music & sounds are most nurturing to drive with
& induce a peaceful feeling while sitting back & resting our
butts in our motor vehicle? These are questions to be explored by any inquiring soul wanting to be part of the "peaceful & aware driving" movement. Ponder these thoughts as you use your cars to be "truly helpful" in getting us all Home in the earliest possible time.
Check my news article in this same section, and if you want
to sponsor a Safe Driving Seminar in your city, I'm at your service.
Check these figures on the increase of "Stop Sign running
tickets," to confirm that there is indeed a need for us
human beings to learn how to slow down & stop to smell
the roses!
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Issue Date: D Magazine MAR 2008, Posted
On: 2/20/2008
The Stop-Sign-Running
Epidemic
by Spencer Michlin |
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TICKETS ISSUED FOR RUNNING STOP SIGNS |
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Motor Vehicles
2005: 3,289
2006: 5,680
2007: 8,960
Bicycles
2005: 0
2006: 5
2007: 115 |
Have
you noticed that more and more people are running
stop signs these days? And that while some employ
the time-honored “rolling stop”—a sort of shrugging
assent to lawfulness—more and more drivers dispense
with the niceties altogether and simply barrel on
through?
You’re not imagining it. According to Jason Straub,
records coordinator at Dallas’ Court and Detention
Services, tickets issued for motor vehicles running
stop signs jumped from 3,289 in 2005 to 5,680 in
2006 to 8,960 in 2007. Bicycles, too. Up from zero
citations in 2005 to five in 2006 to 115 in 2007.
Lt. Scott Bratcher of DPD’s Traffic Section has a
couple of explanations: “Increased traffic is
causing people to leave clogged main roads and look
for alternate routes on smaller streets.” Smaller
streets have more stop signs and less traffic, he
adds, apparently emboldening drivers to ignore the
octagons.
As the resulting accidents increased in 2006, DPD
had already begun stricter enforcement. In 2007,
they received a further incentive: TxDOT added
traffic sign violations to its list of offenses
covered under its police grant program (others are
DUI/DWI and violations involving seat belts,
speeding, red lights, and child safety seats). In
other words, there’s a bounty on your head if you’re
a stop sign scofflaw. “Since then, our enforcement
of all sign violations has more than doubled,”
Bratcher says.
Apparently, in leaving the main highway, we become
pioneers ready to conquer fresh terrain. And it’s
somehow not a big step from trailblazer to, shall we
say—if not lawless swashbuckler—at least somewhat
less-inhibited commuter. Not to get all Rudy
Giuliani about it, but driving through stop signs
can be a dangerous walk on the wild side.
Ross Rader of the Insurance Institute for Highway
Safety puts it like this: “Nationally, the most
common cause of traffic deaths isn’t speeders. It’s
drivers who run red lights and stop signs.” |
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