As a kid, an atlas could hold me entranced for hours. The individually coloured lands and crazy contortions of coastlines mesmerised me. My boyhood fascination for maps was revived last week as I arrived for dinner at Simon’s grandparents’. Simon and his pop were surveying a school atlas. Because I am not so modest with my adventures, I turned the conversation to how I had flown to the other side of ...

I match up as a handyman as Arnold Schwarzenegger would as a ballet dancer. For me, anything more complicated than stapling four pieces of paper is a project. It requires plans, an almighty amount of careful thought and concerted visualisation. Therefore, offering to build my daughter a robot costume for the Book Week parade a couple of years ago was both terrifying and exciting. The terrifying thought came of my own ...

My adult world is full of rich delights. I am gifted with hearty friends who circle their wagons of calm and joy around me from time to time. Close by is the great peace of an imposing mountain with the settling sheen of a pure white coat. I can gaze towards the tower of dolerite while the nearby waves shush my racing headspace. My grown-up place features work that is rewarding, ...

There are hills surrounding Hobart that shouldn’t be attempted without crampons and ropes. Building on the side of such precipices affords extensive vistas over the city and beyond to a succession of mountains or ocean horizon. The gentler slopes also made for a great proving ground for my daughters as toddlers when gravity plucked hold of them to propel them forward while their trainee legs worked to get ahead of their ...

Australian dad James Brougham is setting the dad-life bar high, running 500km while pushing his kids in a wheelbarrow to raise funds for the Royal Flying Doctors Service (RFDS). So far, the single father and his young sidekicks, both under the age of six, have made it 387km, raising AUD $7,196 for the medical aviation organisation founded by the Reverend John Flynn in 1928. Relying heavily on donations to stay solvent, ...

There’s a temptation to focus on the joy and wonder of birth and the bond between a young baby and its mother. But it’s undeniable that the experience for dads is inherently different, whether it’s pregnancy, birth, taking care of a tiny infant, or parenting a toddler, youth, tween, and teen. Two Mindsets After decades of our society striving towards gender equality, I still see that men and women approach parenting ...

The family law system is unfairly stacked against separated fathers who simply want joint custody of their children. “Custody — Blood is Thicker Than Water” is an inspiring true story of a loving father who fought the system so that he could be a dad to his son. As Dads, we are all our brother’s keepers. In this case, Single Dads are our brothers. We must all do our best to ...

In an ideal world, perhaps one could follow all the steps in the parenting books, but real life often leaves scant time to read those books, so you just have to follow your instincts and values! At work the other day, one of the web developers made a quirky observation: “I don’t want the future version of me to look back at the past version of me to say ‘[Expletive]! If ...

It is 6 degrees in Hobart, Tasmania and about 8 degrees off being properly cold. There is no snow. The wind is on leave. It is dark though. The rich indigo of the night and the stillness makes it a near-perfect evening to gaze on Articulated Intersect, the incredible light show that makes it the most public of the various installations around Hobart, that make up the winter festival. There are ...

The stall at the Salamanca Market with a large sprig pulled from a peppercorn tree caught my attention. The farm my dad grew up on had an enormous peppercorn tree and many of my memories that bring on a smile feature that tree as a backdrop… the rusted chains draped over a lofty branch that held the swing… to the home-hewn plank of a weatherworn seat of a swing… Granddad sawing ...

I know that I gravitate to the happy, good things that each day of adventure delivers. Still, there are those occasional times when I struggle as great joy butts squarely up against sadness. I can have tears leak out while wearing a delighted smile. The simultaneous happy-sad thing doesn’t happen too often. Typically, it comes of wondering where my children are right now, wanting a moment to walk a bit with ...

A cherished friend of mine has just died. I cried with my daughters, struggling to get the words out as I related how dear Joe has been. I love Joe for the soft kindness he delivered. He gave me a sense of being a full dad every time I saw him. He told me, “You are such a good man,” and I cry again when I feel those words in the ...

I recently let myself be cajoled into letting my children make up ground on their lack of Saturday morning TV. While I am not allergic to television, I do have some sensitivity to the ‘entertainment’ that plays for laughs from overworked stereotypes. Telly dad is too often the bumbling weekend layabout who misses his children’s school play. Mum is the clean freak and giggly friend to the daughter. The TV brother ...

Taking the time to bring our children on a challenging adventure in the midst of majestic nature can build their self-confidence while strengthening family bonds. Adventure is key to personal and community growth. Mt Wellington is my playground. The mix of seasons might be regarded as its personality. Sometimes it takes an effort to make ground — its tearing broodiness very apparent in the angry, chilling wind and murky shadows cast ...

Australian Bureau of Statistics reveals men and women equally likely to experience emotional abuse. One in Three Campaign “Wednesday’s new ABS report revealed that, in the 12 months prior to the 2016 Personal Safety Survey, women and men were just as likely to report experiencing emotional abuse by a partner — otherwise known as coercive control,” says Greg Andresen, Senior Researcher with the One in Three Campaign, Australia’s national campaign to ...

Editor’s Note: Last weekend, Tony Miller attended the Dads4Kids Men’s Leadership Summit, where he was awarded a Lifetime Achievement Award in recognition of his lifetime service and sacrifice for the men, families, and children of Australia. See the photo above. He did not know it was coming. It was our secret. He was happily surprised. Tony’s 27-year-old son Cassidy Miller had encouraged him to come. We are so glad he did. ...

The “no-fault” divorce revolution that spread across the Western world was led in the 1970s by members of the cultural, academic, legal and political elites, in particular by radical feminists who made the case for easy divorce as a means of women’s liberation. By declaring marriage to be an oppressive institution, they demanded “no fault” as a means of allowing wives to escape marriage and achieve a “right of exit”. Although ...

When I was a few years younger, I would ride my push bike to work regardless of the weather. I did a full season of bitterly cold Hobart’s darkest winter mornings that gave me the full spread — thumping rain, a dusting of snow and dodging tree parts from a storm the night before. My biggest discovery of that season was that whinging did not ever make it easier. The situation ...

We have all no doubt heard the statistics regarding separation and divorce in this country — something like 30% of marriages end in divorce, and a huge number of Australian children are forced to cope with life after marital breakdown. The typical divorce scenario in Australia today is that mum gets custody of the children and dad (hopefully) gets access and an obligation to pay Child Support. Children from broken marriages ...

As someone who has been through the very difficult travails of divorce and undertaken various versions of shared care over the past 15 years, I understand all too well the confusion, stress and sadness these difficult travails bring with them. I have, however, learned a few things along the way that I hope might be of benefit to those fellow travellers who are about to, or are, experiencing similar life experiences. ...