C is for...my children

How can you have two children, (whose names both just also happen to start with the letter 'C') bring them up the same, yet their characters are completely different?

Where do I start with Cameron, Trainee Chef and eldest son
Well, there’s only one Cameron, that's for sure! His character is his strength, and he really is a character; one of those once seen, never forgotten types. Despite his lazy tendencies, he’s razor sharp and has charm in abundance. He’d make a wonderful salesperson and is a natural leader. It wouldn't surprise me if he ended up famous; maybe a captain of industry or on the TV as a celebrity chef.

He appears strong, invincible, and occasionally madcap to the outside world. However, as his mother I know he’s often wearing an invisible shield, the one with feigned self-confidence and bravado. He’s at that age, nearly eighteen, (it must be hormones) when I wish I knew what was going on in his head. I try to talk. Sometimes he doesn’t want to. Sometimes he can’t. Sometimes I can’t shut him up. Sometimes he hates the world. I try not to nag or push too much but I can’t win. I’m a mother, which means on occasions I’m his emotional punch bag. My love is unconditional. He knows that, and that I’ll always be here for him. He tells me he loves me several times every day so I’m luckier than many who have teenage sons.

Cameron’s character will be the making of him. Everyone who meets him says he’s special. I hope in time he will see it for himself and make the most of it.

Chef Cameron; my crazy, characterful, Cancerian clown of a son

Then there's litle Callum, light of our lives. Callum, constantly cheerful and co-operative is still at ten years old considered cute. And thankfully, he’s also very cuddly although he can be cool with strangers. He's altogether quieter, more reserved than his elder brother, never crazy. He’s far too busy being cautious, sometimes fretting unnecessarily. He’s sharp too; intelligent and how he surprises us as the comedian.

Underneath the quieter façade, he’s the one with the confidence. He has a smile that will light up a room. He’s kind, loves animals, and is considerate. It’s a rare quality in one so young. Perhaps it’s my illness that has made him that way. And he has his own health issues to contend with. They think he may be showing signs of developing my Behcets disease. The tests have started. Only time will tell. When he has flare ups we lose our little ray of sunshine for a few days/weeks. His effervescence flattens like a bottle of pop left with the lid off. But most days he is chirpy and bright.

Cheerful, chirpy, Callum the cuddler, confident and calm.

So there you have my C words - Cameron and Callum. My Children.