Real Chip off the Old Block

Chip off the old block.

Q-Who is the chip?
A-My daughter
Q-Who is the old block?
A-Me (Even though I consider myself a new block)

I feel so proud today. I got a letter from my daughter’s school, She had achieved best of all in 3 subjects; English, French and EAL. You know what she told me? ‘Mummy I’m like you now.’ Yes, because I have always told them of how I was always collecting prizes for best students in myriads of subjects when I was her age. When my kids first heard the ‘prizes story’ they were very cynical. They felt I was weaving stories to impress them and make them study more. I told them how I started being one of the worst in the class and how I made up my mind one day I wanted to be the best and of the steps I took striving hard and studying so hard to achieve this.

I was always winning prizes (in my days) for English, English literature and Biology (these were the steady subjects), and also Commerce, Economics, Geography and history (one time or the other). I never at one particular time won lesser than 3 prizes sometimes 5. I always delight in telling my kids how after being called to the podium for one , I would be called in quick successions for the others and it always caused an uproar as both parents and my classmates would cheer. (Oh, how I enjoyed those moments, it did pay for my hard work over the session and this caused me to be nominated as the Head Girl in my last year at school).

Even with all these, I feel today my daughter has achieved more than me. I was able to excel in English language in my country where English is a Second language. Seeing her excelling in English even among Native speakers of English blew my mind.

One funny thing that happened at the presentation was we (parents) had been instructed to only clap after achievers from all the levels had been called to the platform (you know, from year 7 to year 11). When I heard my daughter called for English (she was the first to be called out) I started clapping and you can be sure it was very loud. Everybody was laughing and one parent patted me on the shoulder saying ‘You should be very proud of yourself’. Spontaneously, I said ‘that’s my daughter’. Then I remembered my father. That was always his exact words anytime one of us had achieved something he was proud of and you can always be sure that the rest of us would roll our eyes (in jealousy).

Then I wonder at how much we always take after our parents. It’s always a case of the ‘chip off the old block’