Imagine waking up in the morning, getting ready to go to school. You head to your car to put on your morning vibes playlist, but nothing’s there anymore. You were forced to listen to nothing but the sounds of the road and your thoughts for the next five days. Luckily, you don’t have to experience that because I did.

Last week I attempted to listen to nothing but the sounds of the road for 5 days. I did this challenge while driving to school in the morning and from school in the afternoon. This challenge was very different and difficult in its own ways, as I had two different mindsets, one  during the morning before school where I was tired and grumpy, and the other in the early afternoon when I was finished with school and relaxed.

Day one and two were the hardest. The morning was especially difficult. All I wanted to do was get in the car, put on some Juice WRLD or iann dior, and get my Starbucks before school. Unfortunately, I had decided that I was going to skip one of my daily morning routines. As a music enthusiast and musician I have a strong connection with music, so doing this challenge while I was tired and cranky was extremely difficult. After coming to school from Starbucks and starting my morning off weirdly, as I had taken out one of the most crucial parts of my morning, I finished the school day by getting into my car and ALMOST putting on music. I had almost failed my challenge on the FIRST DAY. I felt really embarrassed, however, and I managed to get my head out of the gutter and make it home.

Although I was tired in the afternoon because I had just finished four hours of school, I was a lot more relaxed as I had eaten food, seen my best friend for lunch, and had Dr. Foster’s Journalism class. My mindset was very interesting during the two periods of the day. The second day was just like the first day; I got to school a little crankier than usual because I was unable to listen to my music, but it got easier toward the end of the day because I had seen my friends and went to Dee R Foster’s class.

Day three was almost as challenging as the first two days. I almost failed the challenge again, but this time it was in the morning and I was able to catch myself way earlier than I did on Monday. I live in Kentfield, so the drive in the morning is especially long due to the heavy traffic on Sir Francis Drake; finding entertainment for myself was hard due to the fact that there was no music playing in my car. On the way to school I drove in silence except for the occasional honking on the surface streets and the sound of the wind while I was on the highway. On the way back I found entertainment…FINALLY! I learned that singing my favorite songs in the car while listening to the sounds of the road was quite fun, especially in the morning when I got down from the mountain I live on. Although I was enjoying myself singing “UnderWRLD” and “You’re My Everything” by Juice WRLD, I got some pretty strange looks from other people in their cars. 

Days four and five were the easiest day by far. By day four I was pretty used to not listening to music while going to and from school. As I had figured out my entertainment for the thirty minute car ride, I noticed I was more focused in my driving.

Day five. The final day. On Saturday I could finally listen to my favorite songs and put on my playlist. I got in my car in the morning and drove myself to school. I remember singing “Cutthroat” by iann dior, one of my favorite songs in the entire world. I got to school with a good attitude. I was genuinely happy. It was quite interesting to see how my attitude changed in the morning from Friday versus Monday. After school I decided to celebrate my completion of this long, difficult, and frustrating challenge by getting myself another coffee from the Starbucks in Terra Linda. After my celebratory coffee I drove back home. I sang “Congratulations” by Post Malone because I was happy I was finally done with this challenge.

Although I gained a lot from this experiment, such as patience and focus while driving, I would not do this again. I love music too much to not listen to it before and after school. I am really glad I attempted and completed this challenge, though, as it heightened my patience and driving abilities.