Texting while driving. We all know it’s dangerous. We all do it anyways. We’re all idiots. Today, texting and driving is probably the most universally accepted deadly behavior among our generation.

A recent study showed that 50 percent of drivers between the ages of 18 and 24 text while driving. I used to be one of them.

I know all too well the one-handed steering and the quick glances between the road and the screen of my phone. I’d nailed down the strategic placement of my phone in the cup holder nearest me and had begun to fully appreciate the length of red lights.

I also had some close calls. Sometimes I’d look up from a message and realize that I’d drifted into another lane. Sometimes I’d find myself slamming on the brakes, coming upon an unexpected traffic jam or realize that the light had been green for a while.

Finally one day at the end of this summer, my dad sat me down. He’d prefaced the chat with such gravity, I thought for sure he was going to tell me my grandfather had died.

He turned to me and said gravely: “Becca, I know you text while you drive.” I cringed. This was something I’d been denying for years, but he was too clever for me (apparently I’d texted him once while I was driving- great). He looked at me, with more sternness than I’d ever seen him muster up before and said quietly, “I need you to promise me – I need you to really promise that you’ll stop.” This time I did.

The seriousness in which my dad approached me put all of my stupid carelessness into perspective. It was strange to see such a dramatic departure from his usual easy-going self, and it made me realize that this was not just a simple risk that I had been taking. This decision had life and death implications and was nothing to take lightly. I’d been smacked in the face by the dangerous reality of texting while driving, and I didn’t plan on losing my grip on it again.

Now, everywhere I look, I see people texting and driving with the same sense of disregard and untouchability that I once had. I also hear stories and see statistics that make the danger of texting and driving seem more real than ever.

Sophomore Alyssa Bryan recalled some fatal texting and driving incidents that happened in her hometown just before she left to come here for the fall.

In one case, a girl was texting when she drove off the road and onto the curb, hitting two girls who had been walking on the sidewalk. They’d been visiting their friend in the hospital down the street. One of them died instantly, and the other was left in critical condition.

“That was just one of two fatal text-related incidents that happened that month,” Bryan said.

On a deeper level, texting and driving becomes an issue of selfishness and irresponsibility. While texting so often seems like no big deal, doing it while driving endangers innocent people. No texting conversation – no matter how desperately important it may seem – should take precedence over the lives of others.

The cost is great, and the solution is simple. Just stop. Close your phone and disconnect from that addictive social network for 30 minutes while you’re driving. Try to put the issue into perspective – this choice affects more people than just you and your friends.

It’s as simple as: “I’ll ttyl I’m driving.” These four (or is it seven?) words could someday save your life, or someone else’s.