Related Articles from the News
Snakes Alive
As a boy my dad used to tell my brother and I stories before we went to bed. We would even sing a song, “Tell me a story” if he was short off the mark. Our favourite stories were Dad’s Snake Stories, most of them real. They would always end with Dad killing the snake and putting the dreaded killer ...
The Bank of Love
Some time ago I went on a retreat with a group of men. One of the subjects for discussion was the place of our families in our lives. Most of the men were professional, ‘middle management’, if there is such a thing. Most of us felt the intense pressure of ‘trying to keep the customer satisfied’. Many had put their ...
The Joy and the Terror
If you don't like this week's title, it could always be renamed 'The Sweet Insanity' of parenthood. As a nation we have just celebrated Valentine's Day and I trust you were able to celebrate it too. Hopefully you took the Dads4Kids Valentine's Day Challenge and you are more in love this week than you were last week. The funny thing ...
Fatherhood – The Missing Part of The Educational Puzzle
We start the school year knowing that Australia’s educational standards are dropping and yet Australians, on a median basis, are the wealthiest people group in the world. Is more money spent on education the answer, or is something else the missing part of the educational puzzle? Educational experts in Australia have argued in favour of billions of dollars of extra ...
Conversations with a Two-Year-Old
Many years ago there was a TV show called ‘Kids Say the Darndest Things’. This was based on a daily radio show by Art Linkletter, which aired between 1945 and 1969. But, look out folks, in 2014 we can forget TV and even radio and go straight to YouTube for the latest incarnation, which centres on a real dad, ...
Christmas Time – Family Time
It’s that time of year again. You can go to the shopping mall and listen to carols while you shop. You can even get your photo taken with Santa. Christmas can be a very difficult time of the year for single fathers or for children who can’t see their mothers or fathers. Mostly it’s the children who can’t see their ...
Good Dads, Great Dads
‘Good Dads Great Dads – Footsteps Worth Following’ is the name of a fantastic book by Mal White. The forward says it all: “I dedicate this book to my three sons; Jordan, Jesse and Josiah. You have taught me how wonderful it is to be a dad.” The ‘In Memory’ part really got to me: “To my dad, I wish ...
Win-Win Decision-Making
Life has its challenges, and being a father compounds those challenges. Someone has got to be the leader in the family. The buck has got to stop with someone. Herein lies the challenge. I believe that fathers are called to be leaders in love. Being a leader requires making decisions on behalf of those you lead that are open to ...
Family Factories
My father gets a faraway look in his eye that’s unmistakeable. As his craggy face turns towards the horizon and his eyes seek out the glint of snow-capped peaks, we all know what he is thinking. Mountaintops have always had that magnetic effect on him. The feature story in a Reader's Digest began with the above quote. It was a ...
Fatherhood and Explosive DNA
I can remember getting off the boat at Circular Quay, Sydney. I was 8 years old and my brother was 6 years old. My mother had 'taken' us away to Scotland because of marital disharmony, and we had lived with our grandmother for two years in Edinburgh. This was the second time. When I was young I thought all children ...
