A Father’s Answer Surprised Even Himself

Yoshifumi Nomura came to talk about his son. He didn’t expect his son to be the one asking the questions.

Tomotaka, a Year 4 student at NAIS Manila, asked his father, on camera and unrehearsed, what had made him proudest this year.

Yoshifumi talks easily about the things that have made him proud. The watercolour Tomotaka brought home from school. The confidence he’s shown in the pool during swim practice. The progress through Year 2 and Year 3, in English, in reading, in writing. A season on the football team that became one of Yoshifumi’s own favourite memories, coaching from the bench while his son played and they won matches together.

But when Tomotaka asked what made him proudest this year, his father didn’t lead with any of that. He spoke instead about a new student his son had helped settle in. About a teacher, Ms Erikha, who had injured her leg, and how Tomotaka had quietly helped her without being asked.

“Of course, I want you to do your best in academics and sports,” Yoshifumi tells him. “But hearing stories about you helping others, and being kind to people, made me especially happy.”

It’s a small distinction, but a telling one. Yoshifumi isn’t ranking kindness above achievement, he names both, plainly, as things he’s proud of. But it’s the kindness he reaches for first. At NAIS Manila, we see those two things as connected rather than competing: a child who feels secure and supported is better placed to take on a difficult swim stroke, push through a tough football season, and notice when someone around him needs help.

Before the cameras stopped rolling, Tomotaka asked his father if there was anything he hadn’t had the chance to say. Yoshifumi told him to keep working hard, to take care of himself, and that what he’s already doing is enough. “Just keep becoming a stronger version of yourself,” he said. “And if you continue enjoying school every day, I think that is the most important thing.”

This film is part of NAIS Manila’s Are You Proud of Me? series, in which students interview their parents on camera, unrehearsed.

Watch the film here: https://youtu.be/J9Db2sf7Xhs?si=wpJcGJl5-qGoPm7j

NAIS Manila is part of the Nord Anglia Education global family of schools. To find out more about admissions, visit https://www.nordangliaeducation.com/nais-manila/admissions/enquiry