“Excuse me lifeguard there’s a girl drowning.” A child behind me stated. “What?” I asked not completely understanding what she was saying. “Over there.” She pointed once I turned to look. As my gaze drifted across the pool I spotted her laying there face down, motionless in the water. No bigger than a baby doll you see young children playing with, her hair spread out around her in a crescent. That day began just like any other. I slept in until ten getting up when I felt like it, ate breakfast and moped around the house for two hours. I remember as I headed out to my bike noticing the temperature it was a warm day and that meant a lot of people. At this time I was still 15 so I couldn’t drive to work yet. When I arrived I went through …show more content…
Finally two hours later we blew our whistles to clear the pool for our three o’clock break. I was standing in the kiddie area. It was a warm day, but didn’t feel like submerging my body so I reclined underneath one of the umbrellas in the water. Ten minutes later our break was over and it was time to let them in. I moved to my next spot which was a chair by the basketball hoops. We no longer have that spot. The day continued on without a single problem. A little after four people began to clear out and the day seemed to slow down. Finally it was five o’clock break. At this point I was becoming a little drowsy. Again I was over by the kiddie area watching the babies over there splash in the water. I was thinking about dinner and what I was going to have when a child approached me from …show more content…
After five o’clock two lifeguards are sent home and one of the spots we remove is first chair since high chair across the water also watches it. I tore across the pool, hurdled the peninsula completely and plunged into the water beside the girl. I don’t even remember the run, I was at my spot and the next thing I know I’m by this little girl in the water. Somewhere in-between that I also activated our EAP or emergency action plan which is three whistles. Normally when you are taking an unconscious victim out of the water you are supposed to put them on a backboard and pull them out but she was so small I could lift her out and hand her to my manager. Once he took her he set her on the cement and left. It was not his job to take care of her I had to do that while he opened gates and got an ambulance coming. The first thing you do is the primary assessment where you check for a pulse and breathing. This was my first save usually a first save is not with a dead swimmer so I was a little flustered. When you check for a pulse on a infant you check there forearm because at that young you can’t find a pulse anywhere else. Instead of doing that I just laid my hand an her chest and felt for a heartbeat, I also forgot to check to see if she was breathing. She had no heartbeat so she was dead. As the second lifeguard came he asked if she had a pulse or was breathing and all I
Forty hands shot up pointing towards the bottom of the old twisty slide following the long dreadful whistle no one ever wants to hear. Two other lifeguards and I jumped up off the shaded break bench and rushed towards the scene with the heavy backboard and AED bag in hand. The routine save played like a movie through my head as I arrived. I stopped. I knew from there on out this wasn't going to be emotionally an easy save. It wasn't a child who swallowed too much water or an adult who got nervous because they forgot how to swim, it was a fellow lifeguard, a friend.
The demographic sheet read that the boy was only twelve years old. My heart sank remembering the doctor saying “even if we get a heartbeat he will be completely brain dead after being trapped under water for so long”. As I was printing his name bracelet an older gentleman and two boys arrived at my desk. I knew immediately by the look on their faces that they were family of the boy. The chaplain had already arrived, so I called him to escort the three to the chapel to receive
The little guy was splashed on all sides and landed in a puddle of slime that was higher than his head. He saw her lips close for the final time as he was plunged into the pitch black of her mouth. He could feel the pull of her throat that was ready to receive him. In one quick motion, he was thrown into the air as her tongue slammed him against the roof of her mouth. He stayed there only a moment as it was quickly followed by a decisive “gulp.” He tried to hold on, but he was so completely covered by her slime that he couldn’t grip anything. Her body took over and swept him away down the back of her throat where he was pulled deep inside the giant girl’s
One of my most memorable days in my life was when I came to Flatwoods. I awaken from slumber it was about 7:50. I usually wake up at 7:00 but the previous day I received a letter in the mail saying I have been approved at job corps of VA aka Flatwoods. I have to be ready to leave at 10:30 so I can catch the bus. I have arrived at the Greyhound and it was quite a while so I had some free time. Going to the store I saw a Subway. I ate there for 40 minutes it was now 10:28 and on my way walking back and people was just loading up on the bus. The man driving the bus checked my bus ticket and I put my bags on the bus.
It was a day like every other, just another day at work. Or at least at the time that’s what I thought. Soon however, this day would go down is one of the worst days of my life. Devastation, sadness, pain, betrayal, anger swam through my veins and filled my entire body this day.
The day was September 11th, the year 2001. It started as just another normal day. I got up around 6:30 a.m. to get ready for work. I took a shower and got dressed as normal. Then I made the best breakfast I could find: slightly buttered toast. I shoved the toast in my mouth, buttoned up my suit, and headed out the door.
There’s nothing more heart wrenching and soul consuming than losing a parent. You feel your whole world crumbling and blazing with a fire of disparity deep within your body. Rocking you into depression and holding you there till you feel as though you’ve lost your grasp in reality. The denial that, they are still there with you in this world and not lost forever in a sea of memories and a choir of “They’re watching you from up there, looking down at you.” But they’ll never know the connection that a father has with his daughter.
Children running, shouting, grinning. Such is an ordinary day as a water park lifeguard. I take a friends spot for their break, as I frequently did. He was the reason I got the job. I thought, $10 a hour to pace forward and backward? My 16 year old self couldn't dream of more. But, that was three months back and I had no fervor over the job left. I wind up fantasizing gazing at the base of the pool as I pace forward and backward. Then one day, I hear a splash from the left side of the pool and see a young lady attempting to keep herself up. In one motion, I kick my shoes off the second I see her and dive to help her. Luckily, I get to her while she’s still able to keep herself above the water. I pull her onto my tube and start my spiel. You are required to see the individual and respond in ten seconds, I took six. I grin, cheerful to do
When he came out of the slide he was face down passive. I slide in and performed the appropriate skills by preventing his head from moving. The secondary guard Jess helped me back broad him. After EMS arrived the audit ended, and my managers were impressed with skills. My second summer wasn’t as significant the only difference was I had become a water safety instructor in the fall, but I always seemed to impress my managers because I got a 50-cent raise at the end of the summer. Halfway through my third summer I was prompted to a manager. It was tricky figuring out the pump room and chemicals, and being 16 with a lot of authority was a thing to notice in the city.
It felt no different to any other day. It was the day my family and I were moving to the United States of America. After countless weeks of packing, this day felt rather calm. This was going to be our second time moving to a different country. Our first time moving was from Ethiopia to Uganda, my father had found a job there, so we followed him. I remember how excited I was to be moving since I was dissatisfied with the school I was attending in Ethiopia. Once we moved to Uganda, life became brighter. I made friends within the first week of school and the environment we were living in was simply mesmerizing. Since our first time moving was so successful, I had very high hopes for our second one. How naïve I had been.
I have to do what I need to survive. I am technically kicked out of my host family's house on the weekends since they want nothing to do with me. They are just required to give me shelter while I am there because that is what they signed up for. While I am “sleeping” I will sneak into the parent's room and reclaim my stolen belongings, since they are my private property. I will then get food with my money, and then I will find a way to charge my phone to contact my friend and get me the heck out of here. I actually have a plan, and it is going well.
just got home from school. I grabbed a snack before I started playing NCAA 08. I picked the Florida Gators and I was versing the Vanderbilt Commodore. I was halfway in the game when my sister came down stairs and yelled,
Have you ever had a moment in time that seems like minutes or hours even though it was only a few seconds? Have you ever seen everything before you play out in slow motion, where you are aware of everything around you, yet not knowing what was going on? I have, and as I look back on it, I feel very blessed and protected. On March 21, 1987, I decided to take a little swim in our swimming pool and almost drowned.
That day I woke up at 6:20 in the morning, feeling sleepy and excited. I quickly ate my breakfast (and brushed my teeth) and set off to the train station with my huge suitcase. On the train, I was excited with a pinch of nervousness. As we got off the train we quickly ran to school with our
From the moment I got home, to 8 pm the following day, we worked, we packed, we loaded, we unloaded, and we cried. Energy drinks and anxiety are all that keep us going. It was a lot of fun! Six a.m. rolled around and people started waking up and making their daily commute. Everything was normal for them.