Shane’s Shindig at Six

Blogs 3 December 2014

Born and Christened Neo Shane, our fist born turned six years old today, December 3. He was born some months after the 2008 Beijing Olympics (his baby brother, Lex Matthew was born on the next Olympic year, the 2012 London Olympics). At home, we call him Shane. But in school, he is called Neo. There are times that he will say we must call him Neo even at home.

Neo Shane Ramos — (Neo Shane at 4 years old)

We celebrated his birthday by having an ice skating activity in Westfield London. Thereafter, we had supper at Nando’s restaurant at the upper floor. He shared the party with Kateleigh, the first born of our friends, Wally and Cathy Tome, whose birthday is on the 7th of December. Because of the proximity of their birth dates, Shane and Kateleigh usually celebrate their birthdays jointly.

Time is really moving so fast. From being a tiny baby, Shane seems to have grown up at the flick of a finger. Now, he is in Year 1 at the Gifford Primary School in Northolt, London. It is the same school where he had his Nursery and Reception classes. So far, he has shown a remarkable improvement as per the latest feedback of his teacher.

His teacher only noted that he does not always raise his hand to answer when she is asking the class some questions. He is just seated quietly. But he answers correctly whenever he is being asked without raising his hand. In addition, he is very good with written activities. The teachers who saw his penmanship were impressed at the way he writes.

When I learned about the parent-teacher consultation feedback, I had a flashback of my conversation with my mother after I passed the Bar Exams. She told me that during my elementary (primary) years at Alicia Central School, my teachers told her that I could have made it better than 4th Honors and 3rd Honors if I had raised my hand to answer. Their presumption was that I do not know the answer that was why they do not call me often. But whenever they called my name, I answered correctly.

I learned in my Bachelor’s degree in Education that each person is unique. There are introverts and extroverts. It happens that I am an introvert, typically not a boisterous person, shy and silently doing my own analysis of things. This could have gained me an award as Most Behaved in Class in my latter years in the elementary level when I transferred to Metro Manila after my father died. I was always wondering why my classmates were raising their hands that almost touch the teachers’ face and shouting, “Ma’am!!!” at the top of their voices. This trait could also be in Shane’s DNA molecules. This is an area that I am going to work on keeping in mind the perceptions about me by my teachers.

Shane’s sixth birthday marks the beginning of his new journey into the avenue of life. We will strive to guide and lead him to the right path vis-a-vis the challenging environment where he is mingling with. I will not leave his growth and development either to nature or to nurture but a conglomeration of the two. Then, we will just hope that everything goes smoothly according to a plan tailored to what he wants and what we aimed him to become.

Shane’s Shindig at Six

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