Yesterday was just another day of watching the clones at school. That’s what I call all the mommies standing in groups chatting as if they are the only important people at the school. They seem to look like clones. Well what I mean by this is they all have the same look, they all super skinny, tanned brown, makeup that should be hanging as a painting in a museum, did I mentioned all go to gym every day in a brand new gym outfit, etc. The children of these clones are also the ones that runs the show at school, high achievers in sport and academics etc. you name it they are the top achievers. There is a small chance if at all, mostly no chance for any of the other students to get into one of these top achieving positions.
So why is my child not good enough? We drive fancy cars, we live in a decent neighborhood, we wear nice cloths and of cause we pay the same school fees as these clones. What makes the difference between my child and these cloned children? I am not quite sure, but I know it is wrong of how schools discriminate against the majority of their students, when they only support a small group of students, “who is mainly the in-crowd” to run the show.
So what’s wrong with my child or thousands of other children that is in the same predicament? Do you think they are average or not important enough to be noticed? They have better values and ethics then most of the clones, who only got their achievement because mommy and daddy sucked up with the right people at school.
Most of these average students are much more mature for their age then most teenagers. They know what they want for there future and they are determent to get it. When you start chatting to them you will notice that being part of the in-group or being a Captain or Prefect are not important to them, it is more a case of being recognized as an individual for something that they have done for their schools. They also understand that “success is a long road and that the individual must work hard to achieve that. For example, since grade 8 my daughter has been going to the Library to assist as Library monitor. This year she was the Library Captain, and we were extremely proud of her even though she was not mentioned in the schools yearbook.
However, she had no competition, after all the clones are not interested in Library, it is an outdated word! Not one single student wanted to spend their first break at school from Monday to Friday from grade 8, except my daughter. She loved working in the Library as a monitor, since she loves reading.
For the clones it was a matter of quick success. When they realized their child did not make it anywhere else, they know the right people that can influence their child to become the Captain of the Library. Interesting how this can happen for a student when they have not once since grade 8 helped in the Library. Once again a student that worked hard for her success was pushed out.
I am sure my daughter is one of thousands of students that are being betrayed by their own school system and the values that they are teaching about success, honesty, self-worth, leadership Christianity, and the list goes on. In the meantime we still pay those huge fees to give our children the best opportunities. Is it really such a great opportunity?
When are moms and dad’s going to stand up against these clones that takes so much from our children. Our children’s self-worth is at stake they are just as important as the top achiever at any school. In my opinion they used my daughter for four years of her high school, because nobody was interested in spending time in the library, and yet when the time came to choose the matric, Captain for Library, my daughter did not make the cut, instead a clone was chosen. A clone that has never even been in the library, I am almost positive, this student has never even borrowed a book from the schools library.
How do you explain this to your teenager? Our children are the most valuable assets we have. They are the future of our country. If we don’t change the system, there is no reason to teach our children values since the adults that is teaching our teenagers have no integrity, ethics or values! We as parents are missing the boat to put our children in private schools because we think they will have a better opportunity at a successful future. Think again, the clones are running the show!
Stop degrading my daughter, who is a super fantastic teenager with big dreams and a mom that will not shut-up anymore!
By Saretta Herholdt (mother of 2 daughters)