Sharing our stories – Doryan

Doryan took her own daughters to Playcentre when they were small and now delights in being there with her grandchildren.

“Gogo, over here” says Zoe as she tugs at Doryan’s arm, leading her over to show her some acrobatics. Gogo? “It’s from Zulu ‘Ugogo’ for Grandmother. I was born in South Africa and before the girls were born we joked about me being called ‘Gogo’.” I guess it stuck!

“I just love being here, I love seeing what she [Zoe] can do and how quickly she’s learning new things. What I also love is seeing how the mums are with the children. How they interact with them. You know, back in my day, it was like “do it this way” and “do as you are told”. Now, there’s more negotiation, more listening. One thing I’ve really learned from my daughter and her children is just to be more patient with them, especially around things like getting dressed! Sometimes even getting a nappy on is a battle!”

“I live six houses around the corner. If I’m not working, I’ll go round to their house about 8 o’clock in the morning, help them get ready for school and Playcentre then sometimes I’ll just stay on at their house, do a few dishes. Just help Jasmine come home to a house with a bit of organisation!