This summer, I spent the majority of my time working. This was my second summer working with the city's public pools. My first summer I was a pool cashier, and moving up the high-dive ladder of success, coming back the following year as a lifeguard. I wasn't sure I was going to be coming back for a second summer at the pools as this summer I had plenty of “big kid” jobs to keep me busy and I was worried about the time commitment I knew the pool would take. Deciding to take the plunge was one of the best decisions I have ever made. When I was scheduled at the pool I never once felt like I was ‘going to work’. Spending two summers at the pool has grown me in many ways and taught me many unexpected life lessons.

Thinking about what I took away from the past two summers at the pool, the first thing I think about is how important the ability is to put yourself in someone else’s shoes. The pool I work at comes with a lot of different kinds of people and life styles due to its location in town. Some come from broken homes, addictions and homelessness. My first summer as a cashier which involved admitting patrons into the pool, selling swim passes and monitoring the front desk while displaying excellent customer service. Many times something would go wrong with someone's pass and I’d have to figure out a way to fix it on the spot. It was astounding to me how many people wanted to go swimming but didn't have a swim suit! Wearing a swimsuit to the pool may seem like a no-brainer to you me but that isn't always the case for everyone. When someone would come up to me and not have a swimsuit, they may not have the means or know where to buy one, so we’d try and figure out a solution for them so they still had a chance to cool off that day. Whether it be they run to Lewis across the street if they couldn't drive somewhere or they stayed out of the water and just waded and played in the spray area without a suit instead. It’s important to remember that not everyone grew up the same way you did.

My second year returning the pool, as a lifeguard, taught me even more ways in which customer service is important. When correcting a patron, you want to create a firm sense of professionalism but you want to do it in the most respectful way possible. Especially when speaking with adult patrons throwing in a ‘please or thank you’ is usually much more effective. So instead of yelling “WALK” throw out a “WALK, PLEASE” instead. Of course with kids, you’re saying walk a lot more so sometimes just the “WALK” becomes a little more necessary. Speaking of kids, this brings me to my next lesson.

Working at the pool, you become something of a role model not only to the kids who may come once or twice but especially the kids that come to the pool on a daily basis. These kids become the regulars. We have a very prominent core group of regulars who come to the pool. Most of them are middle and some elementary school age. You start to know them by their behavior, then their name, then you start to figure out their story. These kids know that pool rules by the back of their hands but choose to not follow them anyways. If it’s the middle or end of the season and the twins are still trying to dive into the shallow water, you have to lay down the law and kick them out. Being a stickler on the rules was very hard for me to do. Some of them are just so cute ugh. Throughout the summer I formed a special bond with some of these kids. Most of them don’t come from the best families or households. The pool becomes their ‘daycare’ and we become their teachers and mentors. Some of them don’t know please and thank you or how to be respectful of others or that stealing isn't okay. I like to think if I can teach a little lesson about life to one kid a day then I am doing my job right. Kids may drive us crazy sometimes but when they jump off the high-dive or say thank you for the first time, it’s worth it.

Finally, I can’t write this article about my summer job without a shout out to my co-workers first. Team-work really does make the dream work and we had the dream team for sure. My co-workers were always supportive, helpful and constantly making each other better. When we would have to swim down 14 feet to the bottom of the pool to save “yellow man” I will never forget the words of encouragement when I struggled to reach the bottom and the loud cheers when I finally came up carrying that 10 pounds of yellow plastic. In those moments i felt like I had more than a team but a family that had my back. Not to mention they are absolutely hysterical. Even though most of the jokes were geared towards me, I hadn't laughed that much or that hard in a long time. This job is long, the days are hot, people aren't always the most pleasant, training is extensive, situations are challenging and you’re always hungry. But having the staff that we had made it seem less like a job and more like fun. I will always remember how important it is to be a good co-worker. The people who you work with have the power to either make you want to come to work or make you dread it. How lucky am I to be able to say I loved going to work?

Thanks drizzy, see you next summer.