Chapter 7- When it's time to stop driving

We live and die with our cars in the U.S. The lack of good public transportation only adds to the problem. I do not know how I would operate if I did not have my car. I know though when I am driving down the road, sometimes the old folks driving down the road can be a bit annoying when they are driving about ten miles under the speed limit. The thing that we forget to think about is how much they depend on their transportation to retain their independence. Aaron talks about the time when it was time for his mother to stop driving. We live in the Orlando area and know what it is like drive around the constant lakes and rivers that can be found all across the area. Driving allows for the elderly to be able to take care of themselves and not have to depend on friends and family. When we lose the ability to be able to drive, it really does signal the closing of our lives. I can only imagine how it would feel to have to depend on friends and family to get around. My family has had to deal with this situation in regards to my grandmother Millican. She has had both of her hips replaced and has a hard time getting around on her own. Her eyesight has begun to fail her as she has grown older. The family and she finally came to the decision that it was time for her to stop driving. Luckily she lives with my two aunts who help take care of her and help drive her around the Atlanta area to places she needs to go like church and the grocery store. It was hard for me to see her stop driving because it truly signaled that she had grown old. I think it is upon the family of the elderly to protect not only their loved ones, but the others on the road. I had an Uncle who was badly rear-ended by an 83 year old man who had no business driving a vehicle. He plowed into my Uncle’s car at 70 miles an hour because he did not see his car stopped at a red light. My uncle lived but has severe back problems to this day because of this incident. Aaron gives good advice on how to deal with this situation and hopefully our elderly family members will realize when it’s time to give up the keys.