Life is precious

Well we have had a fairly relaxing weekend. I must say it is strange to have nice weather on a bank holiday, but that does not mean I’m complaining.

The weather has not been great all weekend. Yesterday we had really strong winds. So strong in fact that two lads won themselves Darwin awards, which is tragic for those so young. The lads, both sixteen, thought it would be a good idea to play with their dog on the promenade while huge waves thundered into the sea wall. If a ball was miss thrown I do not know, but the dog jumped the wall, and that is where this tale should end. For all the locals are aware that the death toll for people going over the wall at that very spot stood at 8 and that the last 3 were policemen trying to save a dog. But sanity was out to lunch and first one boy went over to try and rescue the dog, followed by the other lad to rescue the first. Now all 3 of them are dead and the death toll stands at 10.

My daughter and I had the unlucky privilege of witnessing the emergency services attempts to rescue the lads. Some brave soul put his life on the line and was winched below a helicopter into ferocious seas. Large crowds watched from the shore as man was winched back up and the helicopter moved inland. I was not aware then but whatever was plucked from the sea was already dead. Later my son and I went out for a bike ride. As we rode down the front we were confronted with the sight of numerous police scouring the sea with binoculars. While the off shore lifeboat searched further out to sea. Only then was I aware that somebody had lost his or her life. This morning I took both the kids and the dog for a walk on the beach. Attached to the gate to the sands were bunches of flowers, some bearing pictures of the lads when they were small. I made my kids look. Gave them the lecture. Then proceeded to enjoy a lovely walk on the open sands, where only the day before two children had died.