It was a lovely day for me yesterday. Busy. But one that made me grateful for my son and his father. They spent Friday afternoon after school walking the shops looking for the perfect present for me. Our son gave it to me as soon as he woke. The sun was rising outside and staining […]
Category: After School Conversations
We often go to the gallery
I took him to the 19th Sydney Biennale. He was seven years old. Me: There’s a wall full of nudes here sweetheart. They’re beautiful but I’m not sure how you’d… Son: It’s ok mum. I know not to laugh. I take our boy to the Art Gallery of NSW often. He used to love spending […]
When things seem perfect…
My blog post, Jacaranda Season, was published recently in an anthology. A project of the bookstore and social enterprise LOST IN BOOKS, the journal collected works from 21 different local artists from Culturally and Linguistically Diverse communities, many in their heart language. It’s called Arrival. It is LOST IN BOOKS’ first publication. And according to Creative Director Jane Stratton, the […]
Black and white at the MCA
Him: Mum, give me your phone. Me: Why? Him: I want to take this shot. For Debbie’s Six Word Saturday!
The nightly news and other concerns
We read, watch and listen to the news constantly. His father works in the industry and I need to keep an eye on it for work, so information about the world is always in our home. We could have tried to shield our son from it, but it was nearly impossible. We chose instead to […]
The great escape
“If you could go on a trip to anywhere in the world where would that be?” I ask my son. It was a sunny afternoon. I was sitting at the table drinking coffee and dreaming of the great time we had in Vanuatu when he was six years old. We saw bright tropical fish as […]
Cookies and cream cupcakes. His favourite.
It was our boy’s birthday. I made him cupcakes with his favourite icing. I sang him happy birthday and watched him smile. “Mum, you are a terrible singer,” he said. He didn’t want a party this year. He said it seemed a little childish. He is now twelve years old and already too grown up […]
Worn
It is a 12-year-old teddy bear we retired to the shelf some time ago. The material was getting too thin and fragile. For a time, teddy accompanied our son everywhere. They had great times in the park; snuggled on cold nights looking through picture books; ran down hills and spent long days at daycare. When […]
Tooting my own horn
I haven’t watched Nanette. I want to watch Nanette. I should watch Nanette. From the trailers, it seems like a soul-searing look at one woman’s story. Someone who is, in her own words, “gender not-normal”. “I don’t identify as transgender. But I’m clearly gender not-normal. I don’t think even lesbian is the right identity for […]
More than reading, writing and arithmetic
My son is in his final year at primary school. He is a solid, average student. He isn’t the highest achiever in his class and has had some intensive academic support at school to keep him in the middle. His local public school is not as well resourced as the expensive private schools, but I […]
“Look for the helpers”
I was asked to attend a Civic Leaders meeting recently for a colleague who could not make it. It was in Auburn and held after hours. I could not get someone to look after my son in time. I left early to pick him up and he came with me. It was an important meeting. […]
He did not always devour books
Him: My friends and I have just started reading Lord of the Rings. Me: Really? You don’t find it too hard? H: Nah. It has old words like thus and nay and stuff. But that’s ok. M: what do you like about it? H: It looks really cool in my imagination. He had difficulties with […]
