When my son Shaun was 5 years old, we came to Cape Town for the very first time on holiday from Durban.
We were really excited to experience so many new things but with 5 young children my nerves were shattered. In an unfamiliar town, with so many holiday makers and tourists my biggest fear then was that one of the small kids would wonder off.
It was bad enough if we lost sight of them somewhere familiar, where they would know their surroundings and where to find the “helpers” and totally different to the kind of panic and anxiety for a child,at being lost where nothing is familiar.
Then of course, there was a matter of the ocean ….most of my children were under the age of 9 at the time, and the younger ones could not yet swim.
I lost my child
That holiday, we visited Kite Beach in Tableview. In awe of the white sands that contrasted to the dark brown sands we were used to in Natal and the magnificent Table mountain looking down at us, I lost sight of Shaun for a few minutes and my heart stopped!
Always an explorer, he loved to wonder off and take in his full environment. At 5 he had no fear and would be the child to face danger head on only to learn later that danger often came with a warning for a reason.
And so, in my panic, the first place I looked was the water. Fearing that he had wanted to go swim.
When I realized, I couldn’t see him, my panic deepened and between the three of us, myself, his dad and granddad, we split up to search the beach for him.
Beaches look awfully large and looming when you are scanning them for a wandering 5 year old. They lose their holiday vibe as you swallow the lump in your throat, choke back the tears and try to remain calm.
Somehow, amidst the chaos, none of us could remember what he was wearing, his oldest sister eventually remembered what clothing he had on. I found it hard describing him other than him being a 5 year old boy with brown hair, and we were in the pre-cell phone era , so I had no recent photos on me if I had to give the police a description.
What felt like hours later of us walking the beach, frantically calling his name as I carried the baby and had the other kids hold hands, was in fact not even 15 minutes …..
However
It was the longest 15 minutes of my life!
He was found!
He had wandered up to a little dune area and was looking through the ground cover for bugs, totally oblivious to the panic that we were in.
After that day I was like a mamma hawk and the kids had to hold hands wherever we went. I never lost sight of them again and we never did visit the Cape Town beaches again either,before heading home to Durban.
A visit to the beach
Now days, Hamish and I go to the beach often, but visiting the beach with one child is really different to visiting with a group of kids. Even so, it’s easy to get distracted and to look away for a bit or to lose sight of him for a second if the beach is busy.
I also don’t want to be “that mom” who needs to hold his hand throughout the visit or restrict his fun by insisting he only play by me. I don’t want to be calling him every few seconds to check where he is. ( Because let’s face it moms we can worry in this journey to keep our kids alive and safe!)
Children should be allowed to feel the freedom of running on the beach, splashing in the waves and meeting new friends without feeling our anxieties.
Naturally though, to do this without nagging moms, they need boundaries and to know of any dangers at the beach.
Keeping kids safe on the beach
So how do you keep your kids safe on the beach during the holiday?
- Set boundaries for example only playing where they can see you or between two flags. This will help a child eho wanders off get back to where you are.
- Importantly set rules as to where and when swimming is allowed. Does an adult need to be present? Can they only splash in the rocks? An unexpected wave vould pull a child under the water, causing panic or drowning.
- Set family rules. Some of mine include the kids going off to play in a buddy system, no one going to the bathroom alone and an adult present when kids are going in the water.
- Take a photo of your child before you start playing. It really can be hard to give a good description in moments of stress and it is easier to distribute a photo if you need help to look for them.
- If your children are little, write your number on the inside of their swimming costume, obviously not in a place that would expose them if someone needed to access the number. Teach them to show people where to find that number.
- Use an identikidz tag set up by the City of Cape Town at the local beaches so that if they are lost, someone can call the number and help get your little one back to you.
What is an identikidz tag?
With our beaches being so busy over the holiday season I’m loving this initiative to put an identity tag on the kids who visit the beaches.
Last year, during the festive season, over 120 000 kids were tagged in efforts to keep families safe by the City of Cape Town.
We were at the beach yesterday, and saw a pop up tent at Eden on the bay and I filled in a quick form where I stated Hamish’s name, age, adress, my name and contact and a description of what he was wearing.
The department of social development, as well as the department of early childhood education both had enough volunteers to assist parents in filling in these forms and to encourage them to tag their children to keep them safe.
How does the Identikidz tag work
If your child should get lost or wander off on the beach, the tag has a number for people to call and the Identikidz database can identify your child by the information you’ve given, helping you to reunite with your little one.
Be safe these holidays, look out for the City of Cape pop ups at the beach and tag your kids with an Identikidz tag.
Do you think these are a great idea? Let me know in the comments below.
