There's Your Sign

             Have you ever counted the signs on the side of the road as you travel from your home to work? There are speed limit signs, crosswalk signs, signs warning about upcoming signs, signs letting you know that a deer might jump out in front of your car at any given moment, stop signs, and many, many more. There are so many signs from my home to work that I ignore most of them. They have become part of the background. Road signs are, for me, the epitome of our society and culture to constantly warn each other of rules or possible danger. However, there are many rules and dangers that are not preceded by a warning sign and that is when most of us have to rely on common sense to steer away from potential harm or accident.

            Last week I drove past a group of cars on the side of a mountain pass road. The area where the cars were parked was odd, because I knew there wasn’t a trailhead nearby, but I figured a bunch of friends had maybe decided to explore uncharted territory. As I neared them, though, I noticed that some of the cars still had people in them and they were all fixated on the same point across the road. I slowed down and looked toward where they were staring and I saw another group of people out of their cars in the brush and forest with cameras. And that’s when I saw the humongous bull moose. The people snapping pictures were a mere 30 feet away from the monstrosity. At first I was awe-struck, since I have only seen three of the magnificent creatures with my own eyes. But as I continued to crawl past the cars and people, I was suddenly very aware of the danger that the moose presented, and I wondered why those people were getting so close.

            I don’t know if the moose tried to charge, because I didn’t stop to watch. I’m sure the news would have reported the story if the moose had injured anybody (and yes, I checked various news sources because sometimes I suffer from a severe case of “Schadenfreude”). The thing is, I’m pretty sure people would have gotten close to snap pictures of the highly dangerous beast even if it had bright pink lettering on its flanks reading: MAY CHARGE AT ANY TIME. CAN BE LETHAL. ALSO, LIKES APPLES.

            Without signs and warning labels to constantly caution us about potential hazards, we humans can be downright silly sometimes. How many forest and wild fires have started because someone didn’t stop to think about the ramifications of shooting a gun in an area full of dry weeds and brush? Why are there so many vehicles at the bottoms of canyons and cliffs? Couldn’t someone have put up a sign (reading: DO NOT POKE WITH A STICK. MAY TRY TO CONSUME YOU.) near the tar pit that almost claimed the life of my good friend Martin as he poked it with a stick?

            Most of us, except teenagers, possess brains that are capable of contemplating future possibilities concerning a multitude of situations. Yes, there are freak accidents that no one could have predicted, but a few of those are caused by someone who didn’t exercise any mental power before making a crazy decision. Warning signs and helpful information can only have so much influence over our actions. Be smart wherever you go and avoid being the subject of the headline: TWELVE DEAD IN OVERLOADED JETSKI ACCIDENT.