Why I Want To Be A Lifeguard

Intrigued by the mysterious and monstrous Atlantic Ocean and driven by the inner desire of self-development, I joined the outdoor faculty for the co-curricular community service. I aspired to become a lifeguard, which is the most demanding service physically. Besides, the lifeguard group has been dominated by European students and I want to challenge the Asian stereotype by being the Jeremy Lin.

Regarding to my pompous ambition, I have to admit that physical condition was really something I was short of. The lifeguard team requires candidates to swim four-hundred meters under seven minutes, but I needed ten. Sitting in the classroom and solving math problems equips me with a sharp brain, but not a physical body. However, I decided to give a try, so I wrote down “swimming training” on the top of every page in my diary.

The training started with tedium. Unlike jogging with earphones, you could hardly do anything

recreational when you are in the water. So badly did I want to improve my time that swimming became a fight between me and the Atlantic, who is such a Tai-chi master defending all the time and sapping all my attacks. However, wielding his magic, the master eventually erased my mania for achievement and planted the seeds of calm. The pool also becomes a spiritual temple for musing and reflection. Heart beats and muscle fibers telling their stories, I embraced the sheer feeling of swimming rather than worrying about any results. Be part of the water, it is the trick to swim fast.

After I was successfully admitted into the Lifeguard team, the serious training took place in the furious Atlantic.

The indoor training gave me the necessary capacity, but I didn’t expect the conditions could be so harsh in the ocean. Unlike the “smooth” warm flow in the pool, the cold and bitter seawater choked my throat and burned my eyes. Keeping my head up looking for the direction, I would lose my speed. Keeping my head down to swim faster, all benchmarks would disappear into the overwhelming vastness. I gradually developed the experience to keep both speed and direction.

However, winter wakes up the relentless behemoth in the Bristol Chanel. Wild waves swallow me alive. Fierce wind drift me away. But looking around, I can always see another seven rescue boards in bright yellow marching with me. We shout to remind each other about the upcoming waves. We cheer together every time after the session completed. Even through a single individual seems a piece of sand under the unparalleled power of nature, it is the team that fills my heart with

courage.

Unlike in the tough winter days, the Atlantic is tranquil and peaceful under the warm sunlight of the summer. All the effort paid me off with an official qualification to work as a professional lifeguard with the Royal National Lifeboat Institution. For 36 consecutive days, we as the AC lifeguard team had patrolled over 2000 hours, and we also served the international Ironman competition in Wales as volunteer lifeguards. Finishing the summer, now it is the time to train the next generation of lifeguards. To save lives at sea is a lifelong commitment.