Dear adults who thought that it would be a good idea to let my little sibling drive a car,
I have a few questions. First of all, what exactly are you thinking? I'm not sure if the reason you made it legal for my sibling to drive is because you've mistaken their driving with someone else's, or if you're genuinely insane. I want you to know that while my sibling may be a good person, I can't say as much about their driving abilities. They have good intentions, and they've put in the hours—that being said, I still don't think that those are good enough reasons to make them a licensed driver.
If I had to describe how I feel right now, I would probably use words like "terrified" or "nauseatingly hesitant to drive with them." Although I can't put full blame on you for their new licensure, it was, in the end, your decision that has brought them to this point.
You see, I don't have a helmet, knee and elbow pads, and safety goggles all in reach at all times. Now that they can drive, I will have to have a gear-bag with these items on my person at all times. I hope you understand what a hassle this will be. A seat belt and an airbag can only do so much to prevent the inevitable and imminent doom now that you've made them a legal driver. I don't want to live my life in fear any longer.
Do you know how tall they are? Last I checked, my sibling was roughly three feet, eight inches. That may have been a few (oh, give or take 10) years ago, but they can't have grown that much since then. Can they even reach the pedals? Is that even safe? I'm concerned that you might not have thought this through as much as you should have.
I'm not sure what kind of conversation went on in the car when they drove with you, but when I had the unforgettable experience of being their passenger for a long, life changing 13 minutes and 17 seconds, I remember questions along the lines of "Wait, what do you do at a 'yield' sign again?" and "Yellow lights just mean that you still have time to make it, right?" If these kinds of questions don't concern you, I don't know what will. Maybe they didn't ask those question out loud while they were with you, but I guarantee that they were thinking them.
My sibling has a lot of good qualities, and I would hate for the only thing people thought about when they heard their name was the sense of danger and impending peril they felt while they drove with them.
I have come up with a list of things my sibling could do instead of drive. They're really good at being a backseat driver, a DJ on long car rides and a story teller. Perhaps these are safer alternatives to a license. I hope that you will reconsider your decision.
Sincerely,
A concerned older sibling
