A lifeguard grabbed an orange buoy (it’s called a rescue can) and ran into the waves and swam out to the person. Because what he didn’t know is that I’d been in those situations already. Mostly, it made me afraid because I didn’t know how to make what was happening stop. And I learned that first rule of lifeguarding: Do NOT endanger yourself to save the other person. Because there is one massive exception to the lifeguard rule, and it is this: I would throw myself in any danger to save you.

Source: Washington Post February 15, 2018 11:26 UTC