Of late, the number of times, I have had to swear at the air in my car is unbelievable! The news has been full of tales of road rage. YouTube it and I guarantee that you will get at least 50 videos of men simultaneously driving and hurling a torrent of foul abuse at other motorist.
These events are not cases of Road rage. They are Traffic Tantrums!! These behaviors are pretty much similar to that of toddlers having a temper tantrum:
• Utter selfishness and
• Loss of impulse control.
The difference being, it’s understandable in toddlers; but in grownups, it’s shameful.
Sadly, traffic tantrums are all too common. In fact, one might say that they are just the extreme version of what happens to all of us when we get behind the wheel of a car. The nicest person in the world can become hostile while driving.
Certainly I find myself shamed by my OWN emotions when I drive my car. In no time at all I am muttering about the stupidity of other drivers. Thank God, I don’t taxi my little brother around too often or else he would have surely learnt a thing of two about swearing from me.
And other drivers are doing the same to me, sometimes not at all quietly. For example, they honk harshly if I take a second too long to pull off from a light.
Yet if I pause longingly in front of the ice-cream section in Spinney’s, other people will say, “Excuse me” rather than screech at me furiously. And though I may get mildly irritated if someone chooses the center of an aisle in Lulu to stop and think, odds are I will just politely go around him or her, rather than attempt to beat him or her to death with a cricket bat.
Let’s face it; every Friday would see a mass murder in the various supermarkets if people had traffic tantrums in them. So why is it so different when we are driving?
It seems that in traffic, we struggle to stay human. Perhaps it is because when we are in traffic, we are deprived of that which makes us human: the power of speech (rich torrents of foul abuse notwithstanding).
When it comes down to it, all motorists are prevented from effective communication by their isolated mode of transport. That’s why all motorists get angry from time to time – and some take it way too far.
Should'nt we be questioing the way of life which condemns most of us to spending more and more time in isolation in traffic jams than being with our family and friends? This I believe is also one of the foremost important feature which brings out the very worst side of human nature, making most of us rude and hostile, and turning some adults into dangerous, overgrown toddlers?
Road rage can range from mild – such as pulling a finger sign – to serious – stabbings, beatings, and death. Controlling our temper while driving is vital for safe and happy travelling.
This morning alone, I was in quite a fit! Let me explain, as usual, there was a long queue, an exceptionally long one at that today, leading to a signal, in the densely populated area of Al Quoz, and today of all days, One man gets into Big B Avatar and decides to dough the queue and jump right in front! In true *Hum jahan par khade hote hai, Line wahan se suru hoti hai!* style! Well Neither is he Big B nor are we gaonwaale!!
Guess where he stopped, yes, right next to yours truly, At first I thought I would beat him up. But then I thought, why go to extremes?? I simply rolled down the window and asked him “What’s the Rush?” Of course he looked visibly embarrassed at being reprimanded by a young lady right in the morning(Should I add pretty? Hahaha) But irritated me even more, you have the guts to act smart, but absolutely no anwser to a simple question as that?? I went on “Do you think, all of us in the line are Fools to be waiting here?? And you Mister are the smart one, to jump right ahead?? Don’t you pause for a second to think about what the people behind in the line would think about you or feel?? What if every1 decides to jump the line??” I don’t know if it was the tone (I used the soft, non emotional... *you are disgusting tone*… lol) or the look in my eyes, but he Apologized!!!! Yes he did, just then as in the movies the signals turn green and I zoomed off to my direction!! LOL
I think telling him off like that, avoided the sudden rise of blood pressure in me and a sense of clarity him in terms of the fact that he will definitely think twice about doing what he did again, at least at that Signal!! :P
Think of the possible consequences of Madness of this Sort!
Road rage can feel good for a while as we vent our frustration, but the benefits can be vastly outweighed by the possible consequences, such as:
- feeling tense, stressed and angry,
- an increase in heart rate,
- a rise in blood pressure,
- having an argument or fight, (Like I almost did! :P)
- having an accident,
- damaging or destroying our car and others’ cars or property,
- getting black points,
- going to jail (I am Serious, it can happen :P),
- all the paperwork that comes with having an accident,
- an increase in car insurance costs,
See just taking one look at this list itself will have you think a positive and drive carefully.
That got me think, What if WE could do a little something to improve Road rage and Traffic Tantrums during our daily drive to work to back home?
Here are a few ideas:
- Deep Breathing (Trust me it works)
- Being a considerate and compassionate driver
- Don’t personalize other people’s bad driving
- Listening to Music at a decibel level suited to you.
- Leaving the BB in the bag or somewhere far so that we DO NOT get tempted to touch/use the same!! (I am Guilty of this!! Hands Down)
- Visualize feeling at peace while driving, and say positive affirmations like, I am getting calmer while driving or I can stay peaceful when I encounter bad drivers or I can choose my emotions and I choose to feel calm when I am around bad drivers.
If we can apply all this, tantrums, rages and breakdowns would ultimately get sorted out - then we'd definitely be getting somewhere… Isn’t it? I am definitely trying this! :) :)
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