Spare a thought for families doing it tough this new school year |
The new school year brings mixed emotions. Excitement, trepidation and a mad rush to get all the necessary gear: backpack, shoes, uniforms, lunch boxes, drink bottles, stationary, textbooks, electronic devices, and whatever the status symbol is of the time. Don't even get me started on the haircuts ... and looming expenses of camps and excursions.
Login or signup to continue reading
Media will flood the political lull with stories of school blah with number blah of twins starting kindergarten or entering year 12. Outlets will compete for the most identical kindy twins posing in oversized uniforms, with the biggest backpack to small-human ratio. Stories will ooze of smiling faces and shiny new things. Feel-good news stories.
Rarely do we see stories of those doing it tough. Not because the stories don't exist in Australia, but because the reality of some young people's lives is unpalatable.
School wasn't a good time for me. Trauma associated with abuse meant I finished year 7 and simply couldn't get back into mainstream education.
As a young person, I spent time in out-of-home and institutional care. I tried keeping jobs, but without transport or the means to wash my clothes - or myself - work was impossible. At 16, I was homeless and pregnant with my first child.
Things look very different for me today. I have a PhD from one of the best universities in the country. All while being a mum of seven, high school dropout, TAFE alum, and neurodivergent human that has managed to use their sense of wonder as a source of strength and power.
As a young person I struggled with understanding how others had so much, while the people I knew and loved had so........