I remember this white Plymouth vividly, for I was born in that bygone era when seat belt use wasn't universally mandatory; nor, it seems to me, had the education campaign regarding the benefits of seat belt use really begun. So perhaps it was inevitable that while on one trip or another (probably not the one pictured above), I was reading happily, sprawled across the big red bench seat in the back when Mom or Dad drove over a large bump. The car's rear end jumped and, acting like a catapult, flung my two or three year old body skyward. I bounced off the roof violently, then slammed back down onto the seat. I wasn't injured, merely shocked by my brief experience as a projectile. We carried on unperturbed.
These days, like most folks, I never drive or ride anywhere in a vehicle without wearing my seat belt, nor do my parents. This simple fact reminds me that society does change and people do adopt better habits; it just takes a little education and the collective goodwill of citizens and our elected officials. It only took a couple of decades for seat belts to catch on; this gives me hope that perhaps we shall, after all, take action to meet other challenges, the wealth gap and climate change chief among them.
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