Ho ho ho. Here’s something I wrote for The Age on the Christmas spirit. May you all have a wonderful festive period! I was going to say that Christmas has crept up on me, but actually this year it feels more like an ambush and I feel a little resentful. Most of my grinchiness is […]
Working with kids during the pandemic has been challenging (I may never actually recover), but the flexibility has been brilliant. Something I wrote for The Age. * The debate about how the world of work can realistically accommodate mothers juggling childcare and careers is not new. But as Victoria reaches its 90 per cent vaccination […]
SBS asked if I could write something about the gold rush. Here’s something I cobbled together. * Until recently, all I knew about my great-grandfather was that he had come to Australia as a young man to find gold. Now that I’m older, I’ve become more curious about him – and I’m glad I have. […]
An article I wrote for SBS about visiting the cemetery. Something to cheer us up! 😉 When I was a child, while other families would go bike riding or to the beach at the weekend, mine would have a trip to the cemetery. To me, it was better than going to the shops, and there […]
Something I wrote for The Age on the playgrounds closing in Melbourne. Hoping no one trolls me 🙂 *** No doubt a barrage of expletives was unleashed in WhatsApp parenting groups when Daniel Andrews announced that playgrounds were closing. As a mother of two children under 5, I was moved to the f word by […]
I like eating alone. Here’s something I wrote for SBS. People gush about the benefits of families eating together – it’s a ritual that apparently strengthens families, boosts a child’s vocabulary and combats obesity and juvenile delinquency.[1] [2] We only have to look at the movies to know that family mealtimes are a big, life-affirming […]
Here’s something I wrote for SBS on my big fat Chinese nose. *** My nose is a big, fat, flat Chinese nose. I never really gave it much thought as a pre-schooler. It worked perfectly well – it sniffed things, wrinkled in disgust, sneezed and performed other critical nasal functions such as facilitating breathing. I […]
Hi there, how are you? Here’s an opinion piece I wrote for The Age/Daily Life. Netball Australia’s recent finding that the traditional figure-hugging short netball dress was turning people away from the sport and may even be phased out strikes me as highly appropriate. That’s because the dress, along with other items of sporting apparel […]
Hello. I’ve just turned 40 and thought it would be appropriate to write about grey hair. Here’s something I wrote for SBS. *** I was round Mother’s for a family dinner with various aunts, cousins and nephews. Ah, home sweet home, the one place you can be yourself and let your hair – “Oh!” Mother […]
Hello! Here’s something I wrote for SBS on being a failed tiger cub. 🐅 I’m a failed tiger cub. I was the kind of child that would have given infamous Tiger Mom, Amy Chua, heart palpitations. Most of us are familiar with the Tiger Mother’s rigorous parenting style, where academic and musical achievement is forced on […]
Kelly Eng 