My soapbox needs an upgrade. Previously I made do with an upturned milk crate. I could – metaphorically – stand atop and crusade. My crusade is usually stirred of a parenting niggle but my audience is sometimes just me. This time around I want to stand a little taller and shout out a little louder. A new soapbox on a grander scale might help or maybe trade up to five milk ...
Back in school times, I felt the awkwardness of being one of four students in the mix of eighty school leavers not dolled up in black dinner suits or tuxedos. From the daggy surround of Mum and Dad’s brown Datsun 280B, I scanned the crisp black and white of young men and the sharp colours of gorgeous dresses delicately draped on girls. Back then, I craved the safety of mimicking the ...
Ironically, my marriage ended as it should have begun. After lodging divorce papers the other day, I ambled out of the court offices into Salamanca Place. I deliberately slowed my pace to the steady step of a bridal march in order to soak in the soft morning sun. The sun’s glow wrapped an embrace of blanketing cheer that warmed my sombre mood. Fifteen years earlier, wedding day rain was a disappointing ...
My two earthly angels are spirited souls. Some of their spirit erupts spontaneously from joy spilling out of a moment where our awesome is in sync. This afternoon was a classic. Now, I appreciate that at 2:59 pm my daughters’ energy levels are spent. Their reserve tank is down to fumes. Yet, the 3:00 pm end-of-school alarm triggers some primal force, and the tapped-out slump converts swiftly to a frenzied push ...
I send out a warm Mother’s Day wish for my mum to be blessed with genuine pride in having raised three awesome men. I admire the example of care she set in her nursing work, especially with the elderly. I saw Mum argue the case for patients to be treated with the utmost dignity and respect when the frailty of the aged patients prevented them from advocating for themselves. I hold ...
Once upon a not-so-long-ago-time, I wasn’t a single dad. I was just a dad. Well, not “just”. For a just-starting-out dad, I had set some parenting goals. I quite deliberately set out to be anything but “just a dad.” I had a profound sense of parenting purpose. I was pounding with pride at the prospect of crafting a wonderful little person and was underway with nurturing and nursing my – our ...
A few years back I let go of a muffled swear word after pacing mile after frustrating mile of city blocks with my daughters looking for smart black flats that bucked the trend of imitation tramp. Ever alert to any parental blemish that might be used as evidence against me, my eldest caught my cussing which was supposed to be contained in my head. My potty-mouth shoe-shopping incident has become a ...
Bill runs his own business devoted to strengthening the relationship between children and parents. He artfully taps into the desire children and parents have for wholehearted connectedness. Bill simply prompts parents to maintain time and space in the relationship schedule for it to thrive. Bill shares with his parent and child audience various conversation starters to help them to sharpen up their skills to have the hearty conversations that make for ...
I am amused by the serious instruction of friends, “Do what you love and what feels right for you.” Their career counselling advice amuses me because they haven’t regarded that what I love and what feels right can sometimes yell wildly at each other in conflict. In the red corner, What-I-Love argues that there are Tassie mountain summits that I am yet to tread. In the blue corner, What-Feels-Right makes the ...
This year I am grateful that the Easter Bunny won’t be stopping by. The shambolic mess that the break‑and‑enter bunny left last year has left me thankful for a reprieve. There are many things that I celebrate at Easter… family traditions, the ceremony and stories of Easter accounts and the extra holiday time that I am able to share with my beautiful earthly angels. I definitely do not celebrate the intrusion ...
RESOURCES
ASSETS
TRAINING
Events
MUMS
© Copyright Dads4Kids 2002 – 2025 All rights reserved (ABN: 63 563 020 918)
The Fatherhood Foundation Incorporated trading as Dads4Kids is a Harm Prevention Charity listed under Subdivision 30_EA of the Australian Income Tax Assessment Act 1997 with Tax Deductible Status (DGR) for donations
Dads4Kids – Building Men. Growing Fathers. Changing Generations.
