Belatedly 18 and the end of school

Things have been a bit chaotic recently and despite meaning to sit down and write something, life has been in the way. But I have some time and so it’s worthy of spending a couple of those minutes putting a marker in the ground.

Thomas has turned 18. Not only that, he’s finished school as well. Thomas turning 18 filled me with a little more trepidation than his brothers, probably because he was so obviously keen for the event and the fact that it marked his entry into adulthood. And legal access to alcohol. Given the proximity of that event to the commencement of his final school exams. The planning for the 18^th party kicked of pretty early and certainly seemed to be attracting more attention than some of the school work.

The party went off without a hitch, a good time was had and no police were called and Thomas even remembers it. Mission accomplished.

Thomas had come along way in the last two years. It seems that since moving schools at the start of Year 10 he’s really come into his own and found himself and has a great group of friends. He’s continued with his refereeing and this year was named in the talent development squad which was a nice piece of recognition. At lease being able to drive himself to games has meant that our taxi duties have been significantly reduced. It’s put some good cash in his pocket, but also really helped him to mature as he deals with all the different personalities one encounters during a football season. You know that he’s embraced the role when he tells you how many red cards he’s issued not to mention coaches that he has ejected from games!

The passion for computer games remains while the juggling and card tricks have taken a back seat. There were times when I lamented the fact that I never seemed to be able to bust him studying no matter what surprise tactics I employed, but he assures me that the study really did happen and we just have to hope now that the evidence is borne out when the results come through.

Rather than doing schoolies he’s heading off to a rented shack with a group of friends from school and then eagerly awaiting his first Temby new years event where he will be legally allowed to partake of the grog without fear of repercussions from the parentals. We’ll have to see if he manages to make it to midnight or whether misplaced enthusiasm does him in early. Hopefully it will be the former.

So as we sit and wait for the results and Uni offers we look forward to Christmas, the New Year and a celebratory trip to Japan to indulge in some skiing. We’re extremely proud of Thomas and the young man that he’s becoming and wish him the very best for the next stage beyond school.