Surf Life Saving - Day at Maroubra

Last Sunday, we went on a field trip to Maroubra Beach to learn about Surf Life Saving. It was such a unique experience seeing the kids training to become life guards! They were doing races and showing their abilities to be a good future life guard. We learned that it is somewhat of a way to give back to the community as an Australian. On the weekends, the life guards are volunteers and they look out for the swimmers and surfers between the flagged area on the beach. The kids were pretty young who were training as well. They must have been around 5 years old and all the way up to older teenagers. I ended up staying on the beach after hearing about the rules of Surf Life Saving. I saw some amazing cultural aspects of beach life in Maroubra. I saw groups of Bra Boys with "My Brother's Keeper" tattooed on their chests, I saw younger Bra Boys in the making trying to fit in with the older boys. It was crazy how they all run around in packs and enjoy a nice Sunday on the beach. They tended to stay on one area of the beach as well. It was so fun watching people on the beach at Maroubra. I also got to see the older surf life saving people taking the red life saving boat out into the ocean. It looked like a lot of fun, but I know that they were taking it more seriously than that. I've noticed that surf life saving is a very important part of Australian culture and that the parents of the children learning to be life guards were pushing them very hard to become a surf life saver. It is seen as an honor and a part of the volunteer community in Maroubra.