When we first came to the United States 30 years ago, we did not know how to drive yet. An older couple, Lao Wang and his wife, often would take us to do grocery shopping and to some interesting places. At that time, there was no GPS. Every time we went out, we had to check a map and marked the route on the map. When we went out for a trip, Lao Wang’s wife was always the driver and Lao Wang was the navigator.
"We need to take the next exit." Lao Wang said, but the wife missed the exit.
“How did I miss the exit again?” the wife asked.
Ten years later, we have learned how to drive ourselves. We have started making the same mistakes as Lao Wang’s wife, missing exits or breaking too late. We were puzzled at first. After doing some research, we finally understand that it is age related ‘delayed reaction’.
When we see a squirrel running across a street while driving, in my mind, I hope that my husband does not run him over. Two seconds after seeing the squirrel, my husband will suddenly brake. When it happened the first time, I thought that he didn’t pay attention. Then the same thing happens every time like that, a delayed reaction. I have realized that the state of his delay is related to his age. This reminds me that we need to pay extra attention while driving, keeping the distance between the cars, people crossing streets, road conditions, etc.
As we are getting older, our mental reaction is getting slower. It’s not that we don’t see objects in front of our car, rather, our eyes see it, the message is sent to the brain, the brain sends a signal to the hands and feet and the signal is delayed. As we are aging, we must exercise our body and mind to keep them fit. I have already reached the middle age. Physical and mental health become number 1 priority to me.
