It's easy to wander; stay focused

Nothing ruins the splendor of a spring afternoon faster than a serious traffic accident.
Ask any of the officers, EMTs, or volunteers involved in Friday’s fatal collision on Indiana 1 just south of Indiana 26 and they’ll tell you the same thing: It casts a grim shadow.
And the contrast is particularly hard to take on an afternoon with so much promise, so much to offer. The sun was shining. Wildflowers were blooming. It was nothing but blue sky as far as the eye could see.
Until.
Until in a heartbeat it all fell apart.
Details of every serious traffic accident vary, but one thing is constant: Most of them didn’t have to happen.
They depend upon a series of “ifs.”
If a driver had not been distracted.
If a driver had not been impaired.
If a driver had obeyed the speed limit.
If a corner had been taken more slowly.
If a vehicle had been properly maintained.
If they had buckled their seat belts.
If the rider had been wearing a helmet.
If drivers had looked both ways.
And on and on and on.
The fact is, except in those rare instances when a driver suffers a heart attack or other serious health emergency while at the wheel, almost every traffic accident could be avoided or at least reduced in terms of its seriousness.
But it’s also a fact that we live in a world where drivers are distracted or impaired or don’t obey traffic laws or look both ways.
That’s why it’s important for the rest of us to drive defensively at all times, but especially on sunny afternoons in springtime when our minds might momentarily wander. — J.R.