Author: arisefamilycentre

We often remind each other to breathe in during times of stress and anxiety. What we forget to check is whether we are breathing out as well.  Breathing out is important. Without releasing our breath, we can’t take in fresh air, we can’t move, and our bodies remain stressed and anxious, making It harder to think creatively or solve problems. When we are managing laundry, deadlines, children, meal plans and mess, we can lose touch and forget to breathe out!  This has never been truer than in our current state of lockdown.

Parenting is said to be one of the most rewarding parts of being in family. It’s also one of the hardest parts of being in family. Our children are growing up with challenges and dynamics that none of us had to face. When we combine that with the social and economic challenges, being a parent can feel totally overwhelming. Especially when we are being asked to do things differently to what we know.

Dear Mr. President,

Why are you so silent? Is the senseless murder of the young Tazne Van Wyk just another South African statistic? How many children and women must die such violent and senseless deaths for the government to wake up and say, “We have to protect the most vulnerable in our society.” Our children are the future and yet they are growing up scared and traumatised, living inside their homes as it isn’t safe to play cricket or soccer outside in the streets. They’re too scared to go and buy a packet of Niknaks because someone could take them and they may never be seen again. The pain we cry as a nation is, “Whose child is next?”

Imagine something that is private for you – it might be something that is sacred, something that is painful or something that is complicated and not yet resolved. You choose to share this private story, in confidence with someone else. It’s something that has been shared with the other person with the understanding that they will safeguard it for you. You might speak about it, you might be very selective about who you share this with or you might realize that there are parts you feel free to share and others you don’t.

What is family in South Africa?

Not all families look the same.  International research shows that our country is unique by the extent in which parents are absent from their children’s daily lives. Recent studies have shown that over 20% of South African children do not live with both biological parents and up to 57% of children have absent fathers. Many of our families consist of female-headed households, child-headed households, and combinations of families with aunts, uncles and their children all living together.

As Adoption Month marches on, we are aware that there isn’t a single story when it comes to listening to adoptees. Is it important to listen to the stories to expand our views? We believe it is. Thank you Wendy Lessing for sharing your views on the hype around Adoption Month.

This November we’ve intentionally spent time listening to what adult adoptees have to say about adoption because we believe that when we listen, we learn. We asked adult adoptee and adoptive mom, Nomzamo Botha, a few questions about her views on adoption from her experience.

Arise has it’s home in Heideveld.  This tiny suburb sandwiched in the middle of some of the most notorious Cape Flats neighbourhoods:  Manenberg, Nyanga, Bonteheuwel, Gugulethu, Hanover Park and Vanguard.

At Arise, we believe that every child deserves to be raised in a thriving family; and we work tirelessly in two ways to achieve this. Firstly, we work with existing families in resource poor communities to build resilience and deepen connections through our strength-based approach and group interventions.  Secondly, we advocate strongly for those children who do not have families to be placed in families through adoption.