We’re Calling It A Teaching Moment

I have told my darling daughters, many times, that when I tell them to get out of the pool, I mean “NOW”.  Don’t dive under the water and swim in another direction.  Don’t swim to the edge of the pool “the long way”.  There are many good reasons to obey the parent and get out when asked.  And today that lesson was drilled home.  Because a 4 year old vomited in the shallow end of the pool.  Ever eagle-eyed, I spotted the little upchucker in action and saw his Mom rush to the little tyke’s side (ewww).  I saw her perform a partial save by hoisting the little puker over to deckside so he could barf there…but it was really too late.  Most of the chunks were already in the pool.  I watched the Mom attempt to bail out the bigger chunks and throw them up onto the deck, but her expression was one of dismay and defeat.  All was lost.  I quickly alerted hubby, pointing to the contaminated corner of the pool and mouthed “PUKE IN THE POOL” and “BARF” and “GET THE KIDS OUT!”.  I didn’t want to shout “puke”…to avoid causing a stampede and mass panic.  The Mom of pukey quietly alerted a life guard, who hurried over and promptly stepped into the deck puke-age.  Then I observed semaphore-type signals between lifeguards and a scurry for nets and buckets…like that was going to help…

Meanwhile, hubby manages to signal to each of the girls and tells them to get out of the pool…NOW.  They could probably see his wide eyes and dilated pupils, his grim expression and sense his urgency…and yet they slowly paddled around feigning deafness.  Indeed, instead of crawling out immediately, and rather than going to the pool edge that the Dad was directing them to, they each decided to take the long way out…and swam directly into and through the puke.  They didn’t notice.  They happily popped out of the pool, approached me and looked quizzical as I backed away.

After they had had long, hot showers, we discussed the future importance of listening to their parents and following directions.  They can now see the humour in the incident.  I explained about “doodies” and other similar situations that could require a quick and calm pool evacuation.  A great teaching moment all in all.

This story also illustrates why I generally refuse to swim in public pools.  The pool was full of puke.  The lifeguards scooped out the visible chunks and everyone was generally oblivious.  I was tempted to warn the people walking out of the locker rooms and heading out for a few laps.  But hey, ignorance is bliss.

Warning – clip below has two seconds of nudity…