YeahWrite Challenge #442 "Karma: AWESOME!" by Amy Irons

#2 Karma: Awesome!

As a commuter to my college, the morning drive to class is never something I look forward to. I’ve lived in Rhode Island for my entire life, which means I can confidently confirm that Rhode Island drivers are the worst drivers out there. While I experience poor driving and near-collisions on a daily basis, only a few of these experiences are noteworthy, such as this one.

One April morning, closer to finals, I was driving to my 8am class with the sun blaring in my eyes almost the entire way. Because of this, I was cautious, because with many schools along the route, I didn’t want to hit any kids waiting for their buses. So I was driving the speed limit, especially since it was the beginning of the month and Providence has about a million traffic cameras. And then, out of the corner of my eye, I noticed that the car behind me was driving on top of me. I mean, if I had stopped, I would’ve gotten hit, for sure. But I didn’t let this intimidate me. I kept on driving the speed limit, careful of other cars and pedestrians.

I was almost at the turn to my school when just then, the driver behind me swerved around me and nearly hit me, passing me on the left despite the double solid lines. Still not looking at the erratic driver to avoid road rage, I was absolutely flabbergasted when he rolled down his window, yelled some not-so-nice words, and showed me a special finger, all the while cutting directly in front of me on a busy road. I have to give him some credit, though. He was an excellent multitasker.


My aggravation instantly changed to satisfaction when I heard sirens behind me, which erupted from the police cruiser camping out on one of the side streets. I gladly pulled over to witness the cruiser stop the driver who illegally passed me, allowing me to see the driver’s face. Sheer embarrassment. Part of me wanted to smile at the driver and wag my fingers smugly. But the responsible part of me kept my eyes forward, trying my best not to crack a silly grin. I walked to class that day with the extra pep in my step that I needed for finals. Justice was served, and that was all that I cared about.

Okay, so don’t take this the wrong way. I don’t take pleasure in seeing people get in trouble with the law. That’s not at all why I’m sharing this story. The reason why I’m sharing this tale is because there are a few essential takeaways, one being that you should always drive safely on the road. The second one is to avoid petty road rage at all costs. But the third and most important lesson from this story is simply this: karma can be a beautiful thing.

AWESOME!


***The inspiration for the style of this blog post is from Neil Pasricha’s blog “1000 Awesome Things”***

Comments

  1. MelaniCookiesOctober 1, 2019 at 5:45 PM

    Love the tone and your writerly voice in this one. I'll have to check out 1000 Awesome Things! I also appreciated how you set this up to flow so nicely, going back to the exposition about RI drivers. I think it is well-organized too.

    My one wondering is whether you would be better off nixing the final paragraph entirely (simply because this piece is strong and has a cohesive tone throughout it, until that transition-less shift) OR put it in italics so that readers can "hear" you amending your story. That would have inspired me to imagine hearing you say it out loud, which would make it fit better.

    Either way, as it is now, I still think you did an amazing job. :)

    ReplyDelete
  2. Allison SimasOctober 2, 2019 at 11:12 AM

    The best the part for me is where you say "not-so-nice words" and "special finger." Then, calling the guy an excellent multitasker literally made me LOL. Awesome post!

    ReplyDelete
  3. unfoldingfromthefog.wordpress.comOctober 2, 2019 at 7:36 PM

    Nice! I've never seen the police when the idiots are out. :-)

    ReplyDelete
  4. Michelle LongoOctober 3, 2019 at 10:01 AM

    This was fun to read. I enjoyed the "pep in my step" remark and the kudos on the multitasking.

    ReplyDelete
  5. D3athLilyOctober 3, 2019 at 5:51 PM

    Hahaha I do like to see dickheads get their comeuppance. I loved that multitasking line too. It made me laugh out loud.

    ReplyDelete
  6. JenOctober 3, 2019 at 6:44 PM

    Rhode Island drivers couldn't be worse than Massholes... or could they?? Great story. Instant karma is grand!

    ReplyDelete

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