There's no stopping you

Allow me a couple deconstructionist thoughts, and I promise I will end with something constructive.

I was reminded today of two of my greatest frustrations in the driving world. The first is part frustration, part plain stupid. It is freezing cold today in Memphis, literally. And yet, I always see at least one person this time of year, who is willing to bear the bitter cold for a smoke. What is the deal with this? You would rather drive 40+ miles an hour with freezing air blowing in your face in order to slowly suck the life out of your lungs than be warm and live longer? Plus, I've always wondered, not being a smoker myself, if the wind does cause a problem blowing the smoke back in your face, putting out your light, etc. I don't know, but especially on a day like today, I have to think it is not worth it to smoke in your car. So I give these people the word of the week: "ridiculous."

The other annoying thing, and this happens even more frequently, is the bipolar driver. You know, the one that pulls out in front of you because they are in such a huge hurry that they absolutely must risk their life to be in front of you, only once there, they don't even drive the speed limit. This one happens often at fresh green lights. You're in the right lane, you get the green, and as you start driving, someone decides not to stop at their red, but rolls right through without stopping, almost hits the car in the middle lane (think Poplar) and then drives below the speed limit now that they have their spot. A corollary to this problem is the driver on the highway who would rather speed up and cause you (and whomever may be driving behind you) to slow down while merging onto the highway. For what? So they can be one car length ahead? Is it worth it? So now, I try hard to slow down to let a merging car in front of me, assuming I can't just get over. I find I get to wherever I am going on time in spite of this. The bipolar drivers who do this, whether on the highway or residential streets, are worthy of last week's word: "stupid."

I was thinking about this as both things happened to me this afternoon, and I've decided the real problem is that we cannot stop. What is the first (or, granting the legitimate but sexist thoughts some of you may have, second) thing we assume about drivers who drive like this? They're on the cell phones. Yes, of course. Or, it used to be they were changing they're cd. These days it's the ipod, the GPS, the movie.... Regardless of the cause, it's ultimately about time and the fact that we have lost the ability to stop. The person who pulls out just ahead of traffic would rather put everyone in danger than stop. This is only exacerbated by their subsequent slow driving! It's not even that they are in a hurry, they just don't want to stop!

See, stopping means silence. It means pausing and maybe even becoming conscious of one's immediate context. If you are alone, it means solitude. I think that most people would rather just call someone or listen to music or watch a movie. Anything but silence. No stopping.

Which brings me to my constructive thought. Be a counter-cultural driver? Well, yes. But more than that, be a counter-cultural person. In a culture that cannot stop or even slow down, learn to stop. Learn to be silent. Learn to be alone. On my sidebar, you'll notice (or more likely you didn't) that The Way of the Heart, by Henri Nouwen is no longer on my reading list; that's because I finished it. One of my greatest regrets in school thus far is that I haven't been required to read more of Nouwen. I absolutely recommend anything by him, and The Way of the Heart is at the top of that list. It's a short book, quite simple in presentation, and yet deeply profound. On recommendation from Randy Harris, I got this book last month and had to keep myself from reading it in one day, which is certainly possible. The best thing, though, is to read it as slowly as possible. Let the ideas soak in deep. And then, when you are finished with it, read it again. Once I finish my "masters in reading," I anticipate being free to read what I want, but Nouwen will make the annual rotation, if not more often than that. I won't ruin the material for you by recounting it here, but it has certainly affected the way I live and I imagine it will do the same for you.

So there you have it - a constructive thought. Go and drive likewise.