It was usually in May, when few of us had much of a tan. We'd go out on the lake in rented canoes and rowboats and get especially bad sunburns because of the reflection of the sunlight off the water. At the end of the day we all tried to figure out whose burn was the most "lobster-red."
Looking back, I guess we should have sued the boat rental companies. (/sarcasm). After all, on sunny days at home my Mom had us kids play in the shade of trees a lot so we wouldn't burn. (All of us had red hair, freckles and pale skin.)
I feel bad for the mother in this story, if she really meant to show her kids a good time and just wasn't smart enough to know they would get burnt. Knowing how a bad burn feels, I'm sorry for the kids, too.
My friends and I always do that after going out, then take turns rubbing aloe or aloe leaves on eachothers backs.