This evening, one of my fellow Stitch-n-Bitchers shared a line from local Nevada City poet, Molly Fisk: Using turn signals promotes world peace.

My first reaction was, “Yeah! I hate it when people don’t use their turn signal! It drives me nuts!” and that was it. “Hate” isn’t a word I use much. In fact, I pretty much make a point of not using it. Hmm, maybe this line hit a little deeper than first glance.

Upon second thought, two things came up. One, why do I react so strongly to people not using their turn signals? And two, using turn signals does indeed promote world peace by preventing an excuse for people to get upset, and extrapolating this one a bit: choosing community over self-centeredness.

The first one, i.e. why do I react so strongly, ventures into some self-help psychological analysis which I shan’t delve into here. I’ll go call up my stand-in Freud and ask him to pencil me in during dreamland travels.

The second one, ventures into the land of positive intention. By clearly communicating with fellow drivers, one eliminates the second guessing resulting from unpredictable behavior. It says, “We are all on the road together, let’s maneuver gracefully and safely,” vs. “I’m in my little metal cocoon totally oblivious to my effect on others.”

Yes, I’m thrilled to finally take the opportunity to expound on this highly personal and very important subject. Maybe a little too excited…. :)