Corona, Trauma, School & the Future?

I am no expert, but as we enter and live through these challenging times, I am reminded that in spite of the many messages declaring we are all in the same boat, the truth rings true in our understanding that we are not all in the same boat. We are all in the same storm, but our boats look very different.

Some are yachts, others cruise liners, some have to make do with canoes, rubber dingy’s, while still others clench themselves on to floating debris next to others who are struggling to stay afloat under their own strength. We are certainly not in the same boat and our abilities to weather this storm are becoming harder and harder to ignore, despite our desperate desire to hold on to rainbow nation sentimentalism.

One post recently shared gave perfect clarity to this image when it highlighted:

“Only in a country with a history such as ours, do we have many families starving while others complain they cannot go jogging in their suburbs”

BACK TO “NORMAL”

This article first appeared in Knights Preparatory School Blog.

In the past few weeks, as we have experienced our routines and rituals pulled to pieces and discarded, I am reminded by a quote by author Dave Hollis. He suggests that “In the rush to return to normal, use this time to consider which parts of normal are worth rushing back to.”

As we enter each day, we are faced with the question “What will today hold and how can I respond to it?” Typically, our lives are filled with the consistent, scheduled, sometimes mundane and hopefully comfortable tasks that make us into who we are. As a result, we don’t often have the chance to answer that earlier question differently than we have the day before.

It is only in those unique seasons where all we know is turned upside down, that we can truly take advantage of the different, allowing ourselves to risk, to embrace novelty and reach towards something new. During these beautifully difficult times, we are given a slim opportunity to re-evaluate everything.

Parenting In a Lockdown

If you are anything like me, the idea of staying at home, distancing yourself and isolating your family is an uncomfortable way to feel like you are making a difference during these uncertain times. I find myself wanting to do more, to add more value, to bring more hope, to share something that will uplift and encourage. I feel rather useless and a little guilty that the most I can do is stay home while others are on the front lines of this new evil, protecting, healing, serving and fighting back. I feel a little out of sorts.

As a dad, a husband and a man, something inside is calling me to war, to take a stand, to declare that as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord. When I think of this my mind conjures up a scene where I am the gatekeeper to myself and my loved ones preventing the onslaught of an invisible enemy called Covid-19. My minds creates a battle of magnificent proportions where I am the victor and I end the day having given hope and conquered against all odds.

But then I look up and see my kids in the lounge, my wife reading a book and my front door locked. I am reminded that in this frustrating time, the most I can do is also the least. We find ourselves in a situation where our greatest efforts will result in the smallest movement. As a father, where will my great victory come from if I can only go as far as the end of my driveway?

10 lessons from 10 years

As I sit looking back on 2019 I cannot escape the fact that this has been, unquestionably, our hardest year yet. As a parent, a husband, a business owner, a believer and as someone who wants to be significant, not simply successful.

2019 has also been a year of the impossible becoming reality, of moving forward in faith and seeing the God of more than enough move obstacles from our path. So it seems 2019 has been hard but it has also left me with fewer excuses.

We thought we’d look back over the last 10 years and as we we usher in the next decade, share a few lessons we have been exposed to. Not in any order nor is the list complete, but it is always helpful to pause, take a breath and reflect, so here we go:

Adoption Awareness Month-What Must We Be Aware Of?

As we enter the final stretch of Adoption Awareness Month and given that yesterday was Thanksgiving, I thought it appropriate to take some time to contemplate the experiences, narratives, opinions and to unpack what I feel we should be aware of.

It has been a month with many organisations and individuals contributing to the understanding of adoption specifically and how it impacts the triad, being adoptees, birth family and adoptive family.

We were fortunate to be part of a wonderful campaign that was priveleged to give voice to five wonderful adoptees who shared their experiences. Click here to meet them.

Let’s have a look at some thoughts I have had, in no particular order, which have been informed by what I have been reading, learning, experiencing and teaching.

1.When should a child be adopted?…When it is necessary.

Stronger Together

I’ve been wanting to put my thoughts on this down for some time. Be it headspace, emotions, needing objectivity or something else, this topic has been hard for me to engage with critically. I hope to add value in these next few paragraphs. I am neither the expert nor the uninformed, I am attempting to rise above and give reason to pause so that we can perhaps journey forward, not always agreeing but becoming more unified.

My thoughts relate to the narrative between adoptive parents, adoptees, social workers and in fact anyone who occupies a space in between. I have found social media over the last year and especially last few months, to have become a place that allows a narrative which, despite potential best intentions, has been negative, at times toxic and I don’t think altogether benefiting the children whose needs we are trying to meet.

Love The One

What can I say? What can I do? How am I a part of the solution?

These are some of the questions setting up residence in my mind as I find myself working through the sheer volume of tragedies that have been poured over women and children in the past few weeks.

These women, these girls, innocent, victims, moms, daughters, WHY?

The Heart Of a Father – Correction, Protection & Direction

I was recently asked to contribute to an article which asked Dads what being a father meant to them. I love these types of articles which allow me to put my heart on paper and give life to my passions. Amongst other things I shared that:

“It means I will seek to be connected to them, to their hopes and dreams and stand by them, even when they aren’t realised, yet. It means I wake each day with a hope that their tomorrow depends on what I build in them today.”

Being a Father is the single biggest privilege I have and the greatest journey, challenge, frustration, joy and responsibility in my life.

My day started with a “Dads Day” held by my son’s school where we listened to songs, played soccer, made bird feeders, drank coffee and ate boerewors rolls. As mornings go, this was a good one. But as I walked onto the field, flanked by over a hundred dads, present, engaged and loving on their kiddos, I was reminded of another day this week, a day where the voices of the fatherless were raised in deafening silence, asking, begging, demanding an answer to the question, WHERE WERE YOU?

UPDATE: Threat To South African Adoptions

A week ago the campaign at www.childrenmattersa.org began. It seeks to raise awareness of the potential threat to Adoptions in SA should the Children’s Amendment Bill be enacted in it’s current form. In a short space of time we have seen nearly 7000 signatures on the petition and almost 12000 views on the video. We are engaging with various groups to spread the word, leverage off of contacts and raise further awareness. Please don’t stop sharing and encouraging people to sign the petition. We can’t sit by and watch as the most vulnerable and voiceless amongst us become silenced and prevented from growing up in loving families of their own. The video can be found on the above site or at https://youtu.be/nbosXtDggfI. We can’t do everything, but we can all do something. This is your chance!

 

Children’s Act Amendments Could End SA Adoptions By 2021

As many are aware, there are some serious potential threats to the adoption laws in South Africa which could come into effect if the current Childrens Act amendment Bill is passed in it’s current form.

Please have a look at the video we helped create, visit www.childrenmattersa.org and sign the petition requesting the Bill be stopped, further consultation sought and the Amendment Bill be re-worked to place the best interests of our vulnerable children at the forefront of any changes.

Importantly, please SHARE to everyone in your community, don’t stop at clicking LIKE!