Giving Your All (Living Arrows)

Welcome back to my photo adventure, Living Arrows, which is about celebrating childhood. The project originally took it’s name from a poem by Kahlil Gibran. “You are the bows from which your children as living arrows are sent forth”.

I’ll share photos of both Shalini and Shivam from our week. These will be simple photos that capture a moment of childhood.

This week Shivam has spent some time at Football Camp. He has recently fallen in love with the sport on a big scale. Read all about that here. I’ve been at home all summer and have wanted to spend quality time with the kids but he’s insisted he wants to go a couple of days a week.

He’s come to this decision all by himself. I want him to be active, take part in sport and learn the meaning of team work. I’d rather him do something productive like this than spend all his time using technology.

I drop him off at 9am and pick him up at 3pm. The sessions are spent playing fun  games, doing some dribbling practice and football skills, finishing with a tournament.

Shivam’s been really working hard on mastering his skills in the garden all summer. He’s really put his heart and soul into it and we’re all really proud of him. I love the dedication and determination he has shown.On Friday, he came home with a medal. He won the crossbar challenge out of all the boys at camp that day.

The ball is placed on the penalty spot and the boys take turns to kick the ball into the crossbar. If you miss, you’re out. If you succeed, you move to the next round.

Shivam managed to hit his target three times in a row. He’s never won a medal in football so this was a big achievement. Even though he’s played football before and been to camps in previous years, but has never had as much passion for the game as he has now.

He’s really giving his all to the sport and as a new player, beat boys who have been playing the game for years.Shalini has been equally as busy this summer working with her Dad. Sukh runs a Photo Booth studio and is booked for parties and events across the UK. He’s been busy this summer as he’s been booked for lots of weddings.

He can’t go to a booking alone. He needs an assistant and Shalini has taken up that role. At 12-years-old, she is responsible and sensible.

We want to teach both of our kids the meaning of hard work and how we put food on the table. I worked with my Dad in his tailoring business as a child. It really made me appreciate how hard he worked not only to make ends meet but to give me and my sisters a good life.Shalini is quite skilled at taking photographs and is passionate about photography. Although she’s not yet at the stage where she can take photos for clients, she observes Sukh and picks up tips. She helps set up and pack up, lays out the props and keeps a close eye on them throughout an event. She also helps people to get into a good position for a quality photo and helps Sukh with whatever he needs. She will package up the printed photo and hand it to the customer.

It means she is gone a whole day. Events are year-round and she will give up her weekend if she has to in order to help Sukh. We love that about her. She hasn’t once complained and I know she appreciates how hard Sukh works – both in his full-time job and with his photo booth business.So this week I just wanted to congratulate both of my kids on giving their all.

Read more Living Arrows.