Submitted by Steven Kaszab
The authorities have told us that while covid-19 is still with us for the near future, that the economy and our lives should return to some normality. Yes, we see hundreds and thousands of our neighbors gather in sporting and entertainment events daily. Oh well, ce la vie. What will be, will be.
The bad old habits we had pre-pandemic, many of them illegal have shown their faces again. What particularly disturbs me is the bad habits of the roadway, such as texting and talking on the phone while driving, doing other things that you often did while at home, such as doing your hair, eating a bowl of cereal, not paying attention to the road and their fellow travelers. Not that we are the only ones carrying out such antics. Was driving yesterday on a main road and pulled over by the side of a police officers while driving. He was driving, looking at his computer beside him with a cellular phone in his hand. We waved and lifted our phones towards him with a shrug, and thankfully he took it as a humorous prank.
Habits are difficult to develop and also to change taking time to develop. The years we are in the pandemic will certainly allow us to develop some interesting habits. Wearing of masks, standing away from strangers, shopping wisely in an economy that is stagnating.
Seems we are all living in our own insulated worlds, and we often cut the outside world out, separating what we want and need from our community and the roads we travel. This summer I witnessed many a beer can thrown from a moving vehicle, multiple alcohol bottles and cans strewn the sides of our roadways. Walked through a development being built in my community. The number of alcohol bottles was very high, especially in an area where professional contractors were building new homes and using machinery.
There are so many bad habits, but these concern me. It is often stressful to drive to and from my work place, and knowing someone will cut me off, drive wildly on the highway, or perhaps is under the influence only makes these journeys more stress filled. The hold our cellphones have on us is incredible. Rogers, Bell and other Tele-Com firms have such an incredible hold upon us. The day Rogers service was lost for a day, there were more accidents on our roads than any other day of this year.
The pandemic has made our public protectors, The Police either lazy or very introspective, and the laws they should be applying to the roadway and community seem to have been set aside. Perhaps because the pandemic has affected so many of us, or perhaps they simply do not want to do paper-work. Who knows. Something seems out of place or different in 2022. How we acted three years ago has changed in some way. Back then our neighbors began to honor the rules of the road and the police enforced them too. Texting while driving was way down. Not now. Perhaps our law enforcement officers feel sorry for us and are holding back on their legal retribution.
Remember the words of Gandhi who mentioned “Your beliefs become your thoughts, your thoughts become your words, your words become your actions, your actions become your habits, your habits become your values and your values become your destiny”. Let’s pay attention out there, be diligent, aware and alert for our families, friends and community.
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