Nabeeha Qadri: Hello and welcome to the fifth episode of Never Again with Nabeeha. Today I’m with my guest:

Zoe Huelster: Zoe.

Qadri: And what is your grade and your pronouns?

Huelster: I’m in twelfth grade, and my pronouns are she/her.

Qadri: So, Zoe, what is something you would never do again and why?

Huelster: Yeah, so something I would never do again is bad driving. I was in sophomore year, I think. I mean, I’m one of the older people in my grade, so I got my license before a lot of people. And so I remember, you know, there were times after I had gotten to the sixth month thing where you had to wait a long time until you could drive with other people that weren’t your family members.

I remember driving around pretty late at night with some friends and just kind of running into some scary people and not making conversation with them because that’s a stupid thing to do.

But I just remember thinking, “Why am I doing this?” And, you know, I think it’s fun to drive around with your friends, but to an extent. Especially after you’ve just gotten your license because you’re kind of on thin ice at that point. And I just remember, we had driven onto this island [sort of] thing on the river. And it was a bridge where there was only room for one car to drive at a time. And I remember we drove across and we saw this group of just guys probably a couple years older than us and it just looked a little bit suspicious, you know. And I remember I reversed because I was so scared. I reversed the car and we started driving backwards across the bridge because I [wanted] to get out of there. I don’t want to have to [have to] get out of the car, because if you’re the driver, you know you’re the responsible one.

And I remember I reversed and then I saw a car coming behind us. And so then I had to drive across the bridge. And then I basically just did a fast U-turn. And then all these cars started driving across the bridge, and it was super scary. And I had no idea what was going on. And so I was, it was just me and a bunch of fifteen and sixteen year old girls in my car. And yeah, I made sure we got out of there carefully, but I would definitely never, ever do that again.

Qadri: [Had] you ever been to that location before?

Huelster: […] I’d never been there before. Someone in the car had suggested that we go because it was one of those first days in the spring where it was nice outside in the evening and when there’s nice, cool air. We wanted to hang out outside that wasn’t just in our friend’s backyard […] so we just ended up driving around and listening to music, and it was just like, fun. But then we were just gonna go hang out and then… Yeah, I’d never been there. And I’m never going back because I’m just too scared.

Qadri: [At that] moment, what were you thinking? Were you […] panicking?

Huelster: I think I was in panic mode. I mean, I wasn’t necessarily scared, but I was more scared that someone was going to go up to the car and try to talk to us. And I really didn’t want to have to deal with that. And I was thinking “Oh my God, my mom isn’t here. What am I going to do?” But yeah, I mean, I’m glad I’m a good driver. I’ve never been in an accident, knock on wood. […] I’m glad that I was the one driving, [not] someone else, you know. […] I just trust myself more than other people, which I think is kind of a good thing. Yeah, especially at that time, everyone else in the car had freshly been driving and I was the only one that had been driving for over six months. So I would not recommend it.

Qadri: So you were the more experienced one, which is why you [were the one driving]. […] So did your parents know that you guys were going out to hang out?

Huelster: No, well, they knew that I was at a friend’s house and everything. But I still never told them that that happened, so. I mean, it wasn’t a big deal. I think it was just one of those scenarios where I didn’t want to tell my mom because I didn’t want her to freak out. But, I mean, nothing bad happened. But yeah, they don’t know.

Qadri: Yeah, maybe don’t send this podcast [to them].

Huelster: I won’t. I mean, I don’t think she would care. I don’t think my parents would care. I think they would have cared, two years ago when I was a fresh driver. But I think I’ve been driving for two and a half years. So, I mean, I’m not the best in the world, but I think I’m pretty cautious.

Qadri: What did you learn from this experience?

Huelster: I think just being more careful of your surroundings and where you’re going, especially when you’re driving. I feel, you know, sixteen year olds are usually pretty stupid on the roads. And I just think kind of recognizing that you’re not an experienced driver, you know?

And I just think people need to realize more the importance of safe driving, which I feel I definitely didn’t really fully take into consideration when I first started driving. But I think now, not to throw shade at anyone, but when I see sophomores that have just started driving around, I am a little bit concerned because I fear [they] don’t know what [they’re] doing. And when you see someone so young on the road, it’s just a little bit scary. I’m scared for them, not myself, but yeah. I think just being careful and being smart, don’t be stupid. And you can really hurt someone when you’re driving. So I mean, even though we were in a scenario where we would have gotten in an accident, but it was more once you get that freedom, it’s easy to get yourself into a stupid situation. And there are real consequences, it’s not, “Oh, you just get in trouble.” It’s real trouble.

Qadri: And do you think that these scary experiences actually benefit you in the long term?

Huelster: Yeah, I think so. I still obviously, in the summer, I like to drive around with my friends and it’s still fun, you know. But I definitely think now I’ve realized, let’s actually go to a destination. Let’s not just drive around, you know. And it’s a waste of gas. It’s a waste of money, especially if you’re paying for your own gas. Yeah, I don’t know. I mean, I think it’s important to be stupid at some point in your life because I think it really helps you learn, but to an extent. be stupid to an extent.

Qadri: Yeah, that’s a good message. Thanks. And do you have anything else to add? Do you have any other experiences with driving that might have been scarier or something you learned from?

Huelster: Yeah, I have to think. I think I just remember being really afraid of driving on the highway, but I just think, I don’t know, my mom always tells me [to] be more aware of the other people around you. [Don’t] be scared, but be cautious of the people around you. If you feel confident in yourself as a driver, I don’t know how to explain this. If you feel confident in yourself, be more wary about the people around you, because even I’ve had experiences where I’m driving and someone who’s definitely older than me, (I’m eighteen years old), there will be someone who’s a full grown adult who’s just distracted, on their phone, on the highway, or not signaling or just being stupid.

It’s just little things and it’s, you know, they put emphasis on things when you’re learning how to drive. And I think it is important to do the things that you need to do. I’ve had experiences where someone won’t signal while they’re merging on the highway. And it’s super scary […] It’s just scary. And so I think just being aware of the people around you and definitely not going on your phone when you’re driving, that’s so stupid. And especially because people will be on their phone, and you can see it too. And that’s just, that’s just so dumb. Just wait. Just pull over. I don’t know.

I just get more worried about the other people around me driving. And I think that that is kind of an important thing to realize. Yeah, don’t be too confident. Don’t be too cocky. You go down the roads, but I think I’ve never had any super, super scary situations. I mean, I’ve definitely done stupid stuff when I’m driving, dumb mistakes like turning on a green before the person goes because I’ll just blank. I think it’s okay to do dumb things because you learn from it. And now I’m like, okay, I’m never doing that again. […] I don’t know if I have any more wisdom to add or any scary stories, but yeah.

Qadri: That’s it. Yeah. Amazing. Thank you for joining us on this episode of Never Again with Nabeeha. Please check back next month to hear more never again stories.

Music: Playful Attraction from WeVideo Music Library