I went to the pool as a chaperone, but ended up being more of a summer operations staff member

Watching over bags, saving spots, and dealing with the heat. A Marine Day spent supporting the kids' "fun" from a little distance away.

Marine Day.

My child said they were going to the pool with friends, so I decided to tag along as a chaperone.

Chaperone.

Just hearing the word, it sounds noble.

Keeping an eye on safety and watching over the children from afar.

That's the kind of role I imagine.

In reality, I'm sitting next to the bags the kids left behind, occasionally glancing toward the pool.

Rather than a chaperone, I'm more of a summer-only luggage management clerk.

If it were a grumpy cat, it would probably say this from atop a pool float:

"Parents didn't come to the pool to play; they came to run the summer operation."

Indeed.

And just the day before, I had gone to a cafe alone for the first time in a while, reading a book while sipping coffee.

Then the very next day, I'm surrounded by pool floats and bags.

Even though both are "outings," the scenery is quite different.

Fun places are already crowded from the entrance

The Marine Day pool experience had already begun before we even arrived.

The bus heading to the pool was packed.

Once we arrived, the ticket counter was also packed.

By the time we finally got inside, the shaded areas were already long gone.

What remained was a place where unsparing direct sunlight poured down.

The children have their hearts set on the pool right in front of them.

Parents first think about where to put their luggage.

Even though we came to a fun place, the first thing that starts is securing a spot.

The lazy river pool is also so crowded that rather than letting yourself be carried by the flow of the water, it is more like you are moving along mixed in with the flow of people.

Swim rings bump into each other.

Parents and children form a line.

Wherever you look, there are people.

People who came to the pool instead of the beach on Marine Day were slowly drifting in the same direction.

A child's "fun" is built upon the parent's arrangements.

For lunch, we bought bread at a supermarket on the way and brought it with us.

It is fine to buy something inside the facility, but when it comes to enough for everyone, it costs a fair amount.

So, to save even a little, we procure it on the way.

We also prepare drinks.

We pack the luggage.

We make sure wet items and dry items do not get mixed up.

In the heat, we look for shade as much as possible.

A chaperone has quite a lot of detailed tasks.

Meanwhile, the children are playing happily with their friends.

They only come back to their parents when they want a drink.

Or when they need their smartphone.

Usually, they stay a little distance away and only return when necessary.

When they were younger, I might have stayed by their side the whole time, playing with them.

But now, they have time just for themselves.

Parents are still needed.

However, we are no longer at the center of the play.

It's not that parents are no longer needed, but that the form of our role has changed.

From someone who plays along, to someone who supports from a distance.

If you ask me if that makes me a little sad, I suppose it does, a little.

But seeing them run off to their friends the moment they put their bags down, I think that's just fine.

The grumpy cat squints its eyes by the pile of luggage.

Even if the parent's role decreases, the amount of luggage to watch over does not.

It's quite well-balanced.

Though the pool is the same, the way we protect summer has changed

Watching the pool, I realized it's quite different from when I was a child.

First of all, no one is showing their skin; everyone is wearing rash guards.

Both children and adults try to expose as little skin as possible.

Applying sunscreen.

Setting up parasols.

I look for even the slightest bit of shade.

I remember that back in the day, if you got a dark tan during summer vacation,

"You must have played a lot"

was something people would say to you.

It was an era when tanned skin was seen as proof that you had fully enjoyed the summer.

But now, tanning is something to be avoided as much as possible.

Long-term exposure to ultraviolet rays is said to lead not only to photoaging, such as spots and wrinkles, but also to risks like skin cancer.

It's not so much that we've become more nervous than in the past, but rather that we understand the effects better, so the way we protect ourselves has changed.

And the temperatures aren't the same as they used to be, either.

Relying only on memories from the past,

"Summer is just this hot"

is a very dangerous way of thinking.

When I was a child, the first thing I thought about when I arrived at the pool was swimming.

Now,

Is there shade?

Is there enough water?

Did I apply sunscreen?

Am I pushing myself too hard?

Before I swim, I think about how to stay safe.

Furthermore, there are many lifeguards at the pool, and there is a break time where everyone gets out of the water at regular intervals.

When children are told to stop all at once while they are having fun, they look a little disappointed.

However, heat and fatigue can sometimes progress without you even realizing it.

The Ministry of the Environment also calls for spending time in cool places in hot environments, as well as taking frequent breaks and replenishing water and salt.

It is not that things have become more restrictive than in the past, but rather,

things that used to be left to an individual's own stamina are now stopped by a system.

Thinking of it that way, those break times are also important safety devices.

To be honest, I was just exhausted. Still, the slide was fun.

To be honest, I was just exhausted that day.

A crowded pool.

Sunlight with nowhere to hide.

Watching the bags.

Saving a spot.

Staying alert for the heat.

Checking on the children from time to time.

I feel like I use more energy when I'm not in the water.

Even so, the slide was fun.

Once you start sliding, age and parental roles don't matter.

A little scary.

Full of momentum.

And finally, falling into the water.

For that short time, I was neither a chaperone nor a bag-watcher; I was just a regular person who came to the pool to have fun.

It wasn't fun the entire day.

It wasn't difficult the entire day, either.

It was hot.

I was tired.

It was crowded.

But, the water slide was fun.

People probably look back on a day like this as a 'fun day'.

It's not that you forget all the hardships.

It's just that when you have a moment of fun, the sharp edges of the hardships soften a little.

The grumpy cat says, looking up at the water slide.

'Humans seem to be able to forgive a day's fatigue a little with a few seconds of fun'

The job of a chaperone isn't over until you get home

The fun time was over, and all that was left was to go home.

Just when I thought that, one last task was waiting for me.

My child's friend took a little while to get changed.

In the end, we missed the bus we had planned to take.

While waiting for the next bus, the sun didn't get any weaker.

Waiting for the bus under the scorching sun after using up all my energy at the pool.

I warded off the feeling of being on the verge of heatstroke while shielding myself from the sun with a parasol.

Sometimes the trip home is more dangerous than the time spent playing.

Their guard is down because they are still feeling the joy of the day.

Their bodies are tired.

Their hydration levels are low.

And the bus won't be arriving anytime soon.

The job of a chaperone doesn't end when you leave the pool.

It continues until the children are safely home.

Even so, I don't want to blame the friends who took a long time to change.

Outings with children are planned with the understanding that things won't go according to schedule.

Waiting for someone.

Checking for lost items.

Missing the bus.

Things that wouldn't happen with just one adult happen normally when in a group.

A child's schedule includes "time that doesn't go as planned" from the very beginning.

If you think that way, you can probably be a little kinder.

Parents gradually become supporting characters

The children were enjoying themselves with their friends.

Laughing together.

Swimming together.

We struggled to get changed together.

We waited for the bus together.

There, I found a small society that could function even without parents present.

A parent's role gradually shifts to the sidelines.

From someone who teaches them how to play.

To someone who plays along with them.

And then, to someone who holds their bags and watches over their safety from afar.

Having fewer opportunities to step in doesn't mean you are no longer needed.

It just means the place where you are needed has moved a little further back.

If the children are having fun without worrying about me, then as a chaperone, I suppose I've succeeded.

That success is a bit boring.

It's quite hot.

And it's more tiring than I thought.

But my role was definitely put to good use in the children's memories of having fun.

Thinking about it that way, I feel like it wasn't such a bad day after all.

A phrase to show off with tomorrow

Finally, here is a phrase you can show off with tomorrow.

A child's happy memories float on top of a parent's humble preparations.

I was supposed to go to the pool as a chaperone, but in reality, I was just a bag-watcher.

The bus and the ticket counter were both crowded.

The shade was filled up early.

The lazy river was packed with people.

Lunch was bread bought at the supermarket.

On the way home, I missed one bus and had to shield myself from the heat with a parasol.

I was just plain exhausted.

Even so, the water slide was fun.

The kids must have had an even better time.

A parent's role gradually decreases.

But in exchange, the roles of guarding the bags, keeping track of time, and ensuring safety keep increasing.

The grumpy cat curls up next to the swim ring at the end.

“Even if parents move away from the center of the memories, they rarely get to step away from the operations.”

Today was a story about Marine Day like that.

Related articles to read

This article is one piece from the magazine “Human Observation, Sometimes Going Out” .

The plan is to play, the effect is mental care.

Mountain hiking, supporting my favorites, outings with my children, flower viewing, local buses, casual dining out with family, moments at cafes, and the pool on Marine Day.

I am writing down, little by little, the movements of the heart and human habits I find when I go out. I have also started a membership as a place to look a little more deeply at these small human habits found in everyday life. In the kotatsu room behind the grumpy cat, I am quietly digging into human habits that make you think, “That might be true.” The membership is here. https://note.com/ashita_doya/membership



If you think, “I might kind of get that,” please give it a like or follow, and the cats will be quietly happy.


🐈