Where do you live and with whom?
‘I live with my mother Lidewij (44), father Menno (52) and my brothers Splinther (15) and Bendert (12) in Aerdenhout.’
What are you proud of?
‘That I have so many friends, because I can play with them very nicely. That’s why I like going to school, so we can play outside together during recess. We play football with a lot of people. Or we play other games, like tag and hide-and-seek.’
Who is your best friend or girlfriend?
‘That’s Bobbi. I can tell her things I never say to other people. And we laugh a lot together because we find the same things funny. For example, if we fall really hard while playing. Then we really hurt, but we can still roll on the floor laughing.
“Recently I dropped a glass of lemonade at Bobbi’s house. So we had grabbed the mop and a bucket of soapy water, but when we tried to squeeze it out, the bucket fell over. We were completely flat, the whole house was wet! We’ve cleaned it up again. Her mother hadn’t seen it, but her sister had gotten a little angry. Because we cleaned it so well and told it honestly, it was okay.”
Your oldest brother is already 15. Do you want to be that old?
‘I’d rather be 16, then I can ride a scooter. And then I can chill at night and go to the Albert Heijn with my friends. I think that’s really fat. And when I’m that old, I can party. Maybe I’ll even sneak a drink (she giggles).
‘But I’d rather be 10 now. I’m in primary school and you almost don’t have to work there. High school is really stupid. Way too much homework. At least that’s what everyone I know who’s now in high school says.’
What can you cry about?
“If Bobbi moved to another country. And for war.’
The war in Ukraine?
‘Yes. Ukraine has done nothing wrong. And that Putin! Because Ukraine used to belong to him, he suddenly wants to take it back, I think that makes almost no sense. I saw the pictures in the paper, and then Dad explained what’s going on. It is especially pathetic for the children. They can’t do anything about it at all. Some are even younger than me. I can cry about that.’