The Right of Pedestrian Way

When I was in Seattle this past weekend, I drove a rental car with unforgiving blind spots.  Knowing how bad of a driver I can sometimes be, I backed out of my parking space inching very slowly with warning.  There's not much I can see in gloomy, rainy Seattle weather, so when I heard a loud squeal, I slammed the breaks with extreme worry.  Luckily, I saw that no one was hurt.  Just an angry and worried family walking by.  Guilt hit me immediately from their stares.

But then, I reconsidered the situation.

I understand that pedestrians ultimately have the right of way, but I'm only a human driving a limiting car.  When I thought about it, I couldn't fully push away my wonder over the assumption they held of their authority as pedestrians.  While I was trying my best to be careful, what if I was someone who wasn't and had backed out quickly and recklessly instead?  There is no way to predict if a driver will be cautious, and it is dangerous to assume that one will be mindful for the safety of others.  I realized then, the family must have seen me, but had continued to walk by, assuming that I could see them and would stop for them.  Their angry stares were the kind to say, "I expected better from you."  But what can we expect from strangers?  In this world, we can only assume so much responsibility from others.  Our safety begins with our own selves.

I don't think we stress enough in life how accidents don't just happen.  I know that when my parents walked with me behind cars when I was a child, if they saw a car backing out, they would stop my brother and I until the car came to an actual complete stop--and acknowledged our presence--or until the car finished backing out and continued a safe distance away from us.  The question I wanted to ask the family behind me is, why did you keep walking and risk the chance of endangering yourselves with a moving car? Don't assume you have to trust me, trust yourselves.

In life, why do we assume certain things with authority, without fully putting into account our due diligence?  For instance, if someone with position gives advice, would you accept it blindly or would you continue to get a second opinion?  Would you do your research to see if the facts support what was said? Don't people make mistakes?

There is a phenomenon: we do not know what we do not know until we know that we do not know what it is that we don't know (whew!).  So when we make decisions in our lives, we cannot blindly accept that a given person is honest, helpful, and well-informed.  In fact, sadly, some people reveal that they are the opposite.  But when all is said and done, can they take the biggest blame from you when things go wrong?  Or did you take the time to hold yourself responsible and try the best in your power to be as best informed as you can be?  Just because you have the right of way, doesn't mean you will always be yielded from incoming danger.  True, accidents don't just happen, but they do happen.  So what are you going to do about it?