I don’t have many photographs this week. We’ve been busy and I besides for work I haven’t really had my camera out much. except for that time Bo washed her face with yoghurt in the car. That was pretty intense, and sticky. So I thought I’d share some of my favourite posts this week, along with a few of my favourite photos.
I have read some pretty inspiring stories this week and seen some amazing videos.
This one really stood out of the crowd of my weekly reading time, I’m not sure whether it tugged at the heartstrings because it reminded me of my own teenage pain or if it really hit home hard because I’m a mum now and I can’t bear to imagine not being there to support Bo in good and bad times, to protect her, to love her, and to make her always feel wanted. Whatever it was, it made me cry and it made me celebrate the sheer strength and determination of the human spirit. She’s an inspirational young woman, who has found strength in the face of mucc adversity and pain. Power to you, girl. What ARE we waiting for?
This one is an old but new to me article about the power that parents have over the lives and futures of their children. We have pretty much all the power. And to abuse that? It’s a crime. This article is an important wake up call for all of us I think. Even though most of us would never mean to shut down our kids, we get busy, we are distracted, we are all working hard. Sometimes we all just need to remember…. slow down.
There has been a lot of videos and articles and important voices standing up for marriage equality. I’m right there standing beside them. Love is love is love after all. Marriage equality is a human rights issue, equality is a human rights issue. This video was by far one of the most powerful I’ve seen yet. It’s simplicity and beauty and music and message is so clear. It is time.
It has been an enormous and unbelievably embarrassing week in Australian politics. Just when I thought it couldn’t get more ridiculous. It did. In some ways I’m happy to see Kevin Rudd have another chance at proving that he truly does want to make a difference, particularly seeing as just a few weeks ago he came out to the Australian media saying that he has changed his opinion on gay marriage in Australia and thinks it should be made legal (put your money where your mouth is, Rudd, it is time). But I feel an incredible sense of injustice for Julia Gillard, not only in the way it ended but in the way she was treated when she was leading our country. The sexist slurs and the derogatory disrespect that she managed to field with strength and grace along the way. More than anything I’m upset with the amount of ambivalence from the people of Australia. The people who say they don’t care about politics. How can you not care? This is a fabulous post written by Pip from Meet me at Mikes that is definitely worth a read. What do you think?
What’s been on your radar this week?
Have a beautiful weekend friends, I hope you are warm and filled with love. I’m putting in a rental application today and if all goes well next week Bo and I will have a house! I feel really ready to move on with our lives now, and Bo, well, she’s ready for anything.
Onwards and upwards!
xox
bron@babyspace - okay, I want to know how you do the thing where you say what I’m thinking but in a way more articulate way than I could. hmm?
awesome links. I hadn’t seen the uncomfortable video and shared it around.
annnd I hope you get your place! onwards and upwards for sure. x
Alma - I saw a documentary I really liked, Jiro Dreams of Sushi, it s kind of slow and poetic but really nice, so when u find some free time…:) Beside that I have two tickets for two upcoming concerts of traditional music, if I share u won’t understand anything, but here, if u are keen for some different sound from my country;)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cTBfD2YSOLo
&
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u5Cw5bqRZbM
Have a good weekend, greets!
Sash - Thanks Alma! I’ll definitely keep my eyes out for the doco, I love a good documentary! x
Julie - OH the article on breaking a child made me cry. Jarvis and I witnessed something yesterday and I feel so much guilt that I did nothing. … A little girl removed her nappy and then wet herself. Mother used words that begin with f little c…. And called her a dirty bitch, she then rubbed her daughters face in the urine. All the while the little girl was crying Mummy, Mummy please.
I froze with indecision, do I approach? Do I intervene. I did not and since yesterday I have had such guilt ripping through me. I should have done something? But then I always think/hate when people tell another mother how to parent. But thus was different. I am guilty for not doing anything.
Sash - Oh, Julie. I cried a lot when I read this comment… so it’s taken me a while to come back to it to reply. My heart just breaks for that little girl. Being treated the way you may treat a toilet training puppy… Absolutely heartbreaking. I just can’t fathom how you could treat your precious child like that? I get bad days, and I get yelling and I even get the odd smack, it doesn’t mean that I agree with it. But I get it. But doing that? The way I hear some parents talk to their children, is unbelievable. I think that there is a time to step in and a time to step back and I honestly don’t know what I would do in the situation you were in. I’d like to think I would stand up for the little girl, but there would always be fear of repercussion, not on me personally but repercussion on the child later. But also, with your own child with you the instinct is to protect him first. It’s very difficult. It breaks my heart that things like this happen. It really does.
Julie - I have a strong belief in not interfering with another mother’s parenting. We all have our own ways. But this? This was not acceptable, not in any way. I am still regretting my decision not to interfere.
bron@babyspace - oh, this breaks my heart. I hazard to guess that this is the way that mother was treated as a child. probably worse.