Deputy Principal

They Are All Different

As I walked the dog earlier this week, I reflected on parenting and how hard it is. As you know, I have three children. They are wonderful kids; I would not swap them for anything. Even though they are the product of my wife and I, I often wonder how they became so different. They have been raised the same and given the same opportunities, yet they are masters of their own destiny in taking up the opportunities that my wife and I are giving them. 

My son is a typical 16-year-old male, nothing fazes him. He is fairly confident and loves his sport. Yet it is like pulling teeth to get him to take advantage of the educational opportunities he has been given. He could spend hours telling me the statistics of NBA teams or who is in or out of the NRL. Yet I need him to also put the same amount of effort into his studies. He does his work, but as he gets closer to his senior school years, it has not hit him that he needs to work to his full potential. In saying that, we know he will get there; we just need to be patient. 

My middle child, our eldest daughter, had her yearly Mathematics exam on Monday which she began preparing for last term. There were days in the holidays where she would lock herself in her room to study. We didn’t tell her she had to do it, she just did it. Same parenting, different outcome. 

Our youngest child is still in primary school. She struggled in her new environment when we moved to Strathfield last year as changing schools had a significant impact on her. Yet through the support of us as a family, she grows in confidence every day and her schoolwork is starting to improve because she is happy.  

Yes, we have raised them all the same and yet they are so different. While they all challenge us, I wish my son would do more work. He is a good person and has a good set of friends, with the parents of his mates constantly telling my wife and I what a good kid he is. We do not see it all the time but then again that is parenting. You do not always see the best in your child but if they know that as parents we are there for them, that is ultimately what matters. Sometimes it is easy for us as parents to compare our children and I am learning that this comparison is not fair on them. They are all individuals, created in the image of God. They are unique and I love them just the way they are. 

Adrian Byrne

Deputy Principal