The Importance of Being Earnest - Part 6

"Friday's child is loving and giving."

Imagine as a parent, driving your 19 year old dyslexic son to another country whose language he didn't speak, turning around and waving goodbye. No friends, no family, no-one he even knew. Tears Follow!

This is our eldest, Tom. He wanted to be a chef. He was (in hindsight) lucky enough whilst at Westminster Catering College to be selected to assist Master Chef, Albert Roux in a lecture he gave whilst on a visit to the College. In exchange, the legendary Chef handed Tom a business card, and in his pigeon English said "You wheel wurk pour moi!"

He was true to his word. We had dropped Tom off at the Michelin Star Chateau Montreuil in North West France at the end of the summer 2004. We couldn't sleep for weeks. What had we done!? The whole journey home, B kept repeating (through sobs) the words "My baby!". It was hard.

On his CV, he counts 9 Michelin Star restaurants having worked across France, in Monte Carlo and Sweden including working at Joel Robuchon's Hotel Metropole in Monaco for 2 years. Now back in London running his Mentor's flagship kitchen, he's been selected as one of 16 contestants from around the UK for an up coming TV show on professional chefs.

It's been a hard slog for 7 years, with precious little time off (and what time there was for rest was very anti-social!) and even less gratitude, certainly financially. He had a day off today. His first in 15.

We have always instilled in our children that unless they were lucky, they would need to work hard most of their life. We hadn't quite expected any of them would have to work quite as long and hard as Tom does week in week out. One thing is for sure though, he has never been one that has been afraid of work.

He loves his family and is too generous with what little he has, typical of a Friday's child!

Sometimes though, I think he should have been born on a Saturday!

PS - He's now fluent in dyslexic French too!
PPS - The ring he wears - a commitment ring identical to that worn by his darling girlfriend Emma, currently completing a 6 month course in the Seychelles. More of her later!