The Lord blessed me with Christo as my catalyst for personal growth, 21 years ago. He was born with a lot of passion, intelligence, and creativity. We called him man-with-a-plan from an early age because there has never been a shortage of plans. As an extrovert, there were always team members involved in his projects.

Pre-primary

After only a few months in pre-primary school, his teacher requested a meeting with us as parents. She explained that he had a large flame burning inside him. She also emphasized that we, as parents have a huge responsibility to ensure that Christo’s flame burns in the right direction.

When I picked him up after work at aftercare, he usually asked if I could come back a little later because he was still playing. He and his friends were always busy with a project on the playground.

As a 5-year-old, he set up a stall outside the school to sell his artwork. Some moms supported him out of the goodness of their hearts. However, the school informed me about his sales activities and that they were against the school rules.

Primary school

During the primary school years of Christo, Mr Lee, responsible for the school discipline, and I got to know each other well. I remember his first call after a game day at school so well. Christo wondered what would happen if he put paintball balls that he found in the games area in the exhaust pipe of the car of a young teacher. The teacher was furious when a learner informed him of the plan of Christo.

We agreed that I would drive behind the teacher to the exhaust system shop to compensate for all the damage after school. When Christo got in the car, he asked,

“Mom, can you please wait until the teacher ignites the engine? I want to see what is going to happen with the paintball balls.”

Fortunately for us, the mechanic reassured everyone that there was no damage.

However, it was not the only call from Mr Lee. I got heart palpitations when I saw Mr Lee trying to call me. Christo was fortunately good at Mathematics, and he and Mr Lee had a special relationship.

High school

Christo’s best way of learning is to explain facts to others. He explained his history or biology to me on our way to school. It contributed to my entertainment and general knowledge. 

He entertained Zander with science experiments on the garden table. I feared an explosion.  Outside his room, he was growing Cannabis plants and tried to distil brandy using fermented fruit. Next to his computer was a Rasberry Pie with a blue light flickering. I kept my distance from all the cables.

His motorbike provided a lot of freedom. However, I spent a lot of time in prayer for his safety. During his final school year, just before we moved to Switzerland, he and I agreed that I would drive him to school again so we could talk and listen to his music in the car. We also had a coffee date once a week.

His openness and honesty about all the events in his life broadened my perspective and understanding of many topics.

University

We went to Switzerland just before his last school exam. Many people helped and supported him, but his dependency on his ability to plan was crucial. He had to tackle university life independently and struggled through Covid restrictions.

This year, he is a third-year engineering student on his residence’s house committee, responsible for technology and spirit. He also developed a HelsHealth application for the Men’s Residence to monitor Covid-19 in their Helshoogte residence.

I am very proud of him and grateful for his personal growth despite the increase in my grey hair. Because of him, my knowledge increased, and I learned to look at situations from different perspectives. My children have been teachers in so many ways.

I hope the Lord also blesses him with little boys full of passion and plans because he will be an excellent dad.

regards

Emsia