Subject: Fathers-Expressing Love
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To: <[email-masked]>
Date: Sun, 4 Dec 2005 08:18:29 +1100

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Issue 171 - 5th November 2005 	Go to our website Here
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*	Welcome
*	Grandads
*	Laughter
*	Single Dads
*	Special Feature
*	Thought of the Week
*	Marriage Survey
*	News & Info
*	Dad's Prayer
*	About Us

Welcome

 <http://www.bosweb.com.au/content/EB3TemplateImages/771/Limo.jpg> 

We waited in anticipation for the white stretch limo to come and take us
to the airport.  We were still putting some of the finishing touches to
fathersonline as we quickly switched off the computer and were ushered
into our waiting car.  It felt like the limo could turn into a pumpkin
at any moment, but there was little danger of that as it was in the
middle of the day.  Midnight was still over 12 hours away.  The whole
fairy tale idea evaporated when we boarded the aircraft at Sydney
airport to take us to our mystery week-long getaway.

We have been married for thirty years and have five children (mostly
grown up) so we figured it was time to celebrate the event.

I tend to be more visible than my wife and often people give me more
credit than is due.  When I received a Centenary Medal from the Governor
General, I tried to explain to people that it was my wife that should
receive the medal for putting up with me for 28 years.  They thought I
was joking.  If they lived with me for a while they would realise it is
not a joke.  Time has marched on to 30 years, and I wanted to make her
feel extra special as we celebrated our anniversary.  We hadn't had a
full weeks holiday together alone, for over 25 years, since before the
children came along, and don't children keep you busy - sometimes too
busy, but that's all part of the deal isn't it?

On our Wedding Day, I said, "I take you to be my wedded wife and I do
promise and covenant, before God and these witnesses, to be your loving
and faithful husband, in sickness and in health, in plenty and in want,
in joy and in sorrow, as long as we both shall live." At our Wedding
Ceremony some good friends of ours sang a song called, 'Climb the Hill'
by Paul Clark.  We have since recorded it on our 'Straight from the
Heart' CD and have sung it at many weddings since. We reprint it for
you.

Climb the Hill

I have waited such a long long time

for this day to come

And all I have to give is the love

from God's only son

He gave to me to give unto you.

I pray that God will be with us

night and day, guide us all the way.

In our life , there will be no strife

with Jesus Christ and his kingdom 
which has come And made it possible
for you and I to be one.

I will make you queen of my home

under the glory of the King.

We'll raise our family in a castle full
of love And trust the Lord in everything - Let us sing Hallelujah.

In times of trial when things are 
hard to see Will you stand by me?

With love it can heal the pain so
<http://www.bosweb.com.au/content/EB3TemplateImages/771/couple_climbing.
jpg> 
let it rain on the roof of my soul.

There is no hole that love can't fill

So let us climb, let us climb,

Let us climb the hill together,

Let's climb the hill together,

Let's climb the hill together.

Life is all about climbing hills.
Marriage is about climbing hills but having a hand to hold while doing
so.  It can be a very difficult experience. Almost everything in life
will try to prevent you from holding hands but you must hold on tight.
You must use your faith in the hard times, because love spells
COMMITMENT.  Jesus said it this way, "Out of death comes life".  He also
said, "The two shall become one".  If two become one, first the two must
die, because only one shall truly live, and this is the mystery of
marriage which is also the mystery of love.  Few are willing to pay the
price in order to find the mystery, but the rewards are wonderfully
mysterious.

Lovework

Maybe you have written a poem or a letter in the past expressing your
love for your wife.  Get it out and read it to her.  If you haven't got
one, write one.  If you can't write one, read the above marriage vow or
the song instead.  The love of your life will be very happy to hear your
words of love.

Yours for expressing love                             

Warwick Marsh 

________________________________________________________

Warwick Marsh  has been married to Alison for 29 years. He is 
the father of five children, four boys and one girl, ranging in 
age from 24 years to 12 years.  Warwick is a musician, 
songwriter, producer and public speaker who likes to think he 
can still laugh at himself.

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Grandads

The Kitchen Table

by Richard Magoffin
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chen_table.jpg> 

There are a lot of things wrong with Australia today 

And I'd like to have something to say if I may

You'll know that forsooth that our problem with youth

Untidy, ill-mannered and uncouth

Is in fact that their life is often unstable

And it's all for the lack of a kitchen table.

Remember how once we would sit down as one.

And Dad would say Grace when the carving was done!

Our own serviettes from our own special ring

And we all knew our manners and etiquette things.

Then our elders would tell us of custom and fable

When we all sat around the kitchen table.

Now they're building new mansions with four car garages

Our working lives mortgaged to interests and charges

There's less time at home for tea to be made

And it's seldom today that a table is laid.

There's room after room under gable and gable

But there's not enough room for the kitchen table.

Karl Marx called religion the drug of the people

But there's scant regard now for the Church or the steeple.

Just give 'em more sport and don't let 'em think

And keep 'em away from the kitchen sink.

We'll give them more sport and the culture of Babel

The throw-away culture that threw out the table.

With the culture of rap and their baseball caps

There'll soon be no fellas, no blokes and no chaps

When they all dress the same then it's little surprise

That the birds swear as much and as foul as the guys.

So we grandparents must, just as long as we're able,
Keep our culture alive' round the kitchen table

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Laughter

 nurse.gif (15444
bytes)<http://www.diabetic.com/newsletter/images/nurse.gif> 

A woman called a local hospital. "Hello. Could you
connect me to the person who gives information about
patients. I'd like to find out if a patient is getting
better, doing as expected, or getting worse" The voice
on the other end said, "What is the patient's name and
room number?"

"Sarah Finkel, room 302."

"I'll connect you with the nursing station."

"3-A Nursing Station. How can I help You?"

"I'd like to know the condition of Sarah Finkel in
room 302."

"Just a moment. Let me look at her records.

Mrs. Finkel is doing very well. In fact, she's had two
full meals, her blood pressure is fine, to be taken
off the heart monitor in a couple of hours and, if she
continues this improvement, Dr. Cohen is going to send
her home Tuesday at noon."

The woman said, "What a relief! Oh, that's
fantastic... that's wonderful news!"

The nurse said, "From your enthusiasm, I take it you
are a close family member or a very close friend!"

"Neither! I'm Sarah Finkel in 302! Nobody here tells
me a damn thing. 

 Cartoon: Patient in hospital bed with sign saying 'Stress Free
Zone'<http://www.docfunny.com/images/stressfreezone.gif> 

 

 

 

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Single Dads

 
<http://www.bosweb.com.au/content/EB3TemplateImages/771/man_and_wife.jpg
> Thoughts on Marriage

By Tony Miller

Dads in Distress Inc believe that if the following rights were
understood by all in marriage then maybe just maybe there would be a few
more marriages intact.

* The right to emotional support, encouragement and goodwill from the
other

* The right to be heard by the other and to be responded to with
courtesy and respect 

* The right to have my own view even if the other has a different view.

* The right to have my feelings and experiences acknowledged as equal.

* The right to a life free from excessive accusations, blame, criticism,
and judgements.

* The right to live free from emotional and physical abuse.

From the book 'Stop Walking On Eggshells' 
by Paul T Mason,MS & Randi Kreger 

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Special Feature

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When things go wrong, as they sometimes will, 

When the road you're trudging seems all uphill, 

When the funds are low and the debts are high

And you want to smile but you have to sigh,

When care is pressing you down a bit,

Rest if you must, but don't you quit.

Life is queer with its twists and turns,

As everyone of us sometimes learns,

And many a failure turns about,

When he might have won had he stuck it out.

Don't give up though the pace seems slow,

You may succeed with another blow.

Success is failure turned inside out,

The silver tint of the clouds of doubt,

And you never can tell how close you are

It may be near when it seems so far;

So stick to the fight when you're hardest hit

It's when things seem worse that you must not quit.

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Thought of the Week

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The greatest thing you can do 

for your children is love your wife

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Marriage Survey

 
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pg> 

Wed in mid 20s 'for best marriage'
From correspondents in Washington
18nov05

COUPLES who wed in their mid 20s have the best chance of living happily
together until death do them part, a new survey on American marriage
found today.

The results contradict conventional wisdom that partners have the best
chance for a healthy marriage if they wait until their 30s, researchers
said. 

Couples who tied the knot between the ages of 23 and 27 stood the best
chance of success, according to a statistical index on the quality of
marriage constructed on data collected by the University of Texas for
the National Fatherhood Initiative. 

"Beyond a certain age, later marriage does not improve the success of
the marriage," said Barbara Dafoe Whitehead, of the National Marriage
Project, commenting on the survey results. 

Marriage before the age of 20 has long been regarded at high risk of
divorce, but the survey represents the first statistical evidence that
the optimal age for marriage may lie in the 20s. 

The average of age of first marriages in the United States has slowly
been rising, to 27 for men and 26 for women, compared to 23 and 21 in
1970, she said. 

University of Texas sociology professor Norval Glenn who conducted the
research said that 98 per cent of those questioned were married, had
been married or wanted to marry, suggesting that predictions of the
institution's demise were exaggerated. 

"We are a very marrying country," he said. 

The survey also found that the top three reasons for divorce in the
United States were lack of commitment, too much arguing and infidelity. 

Conducted among 1503 Americans aged 18 and older between late 2003 and
early 2004, the survey asked questions about attitude and aspirations
towards marriage. 

The National Fatherhood Initiative is a non-profit advocacy group, and
was founded in 1994 to address the problem of absent fathers in society.
_________________________________________________________

Article  from the Herald Sun.  Download the entire survey from 

http://www.fatherhood.org/research.asp

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News & Info

 

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num%3D10%26hl%3Den%26lr%3D> 

23 November 2005 
Bangor Daily News (USA) 
LD 1229 would strengthen divorce decrees 
Do you know someone who's been denied access to their own child? We do,
it happens every day in Maine, and across the nation. In our personal
and professional lives, we have known many people who have been denied
access to their children, even though their court order directs and
legally defines the guidelines of their visitation. 
Read more
http://www.dadsindistress.asn.au/news303.html
<http://www.dadsindistress.asn.au/news303.html>   

22 November 2005 
Information in relation to Suicides and family court 
(Updated information Re Andrew's suicide) 
Andrew 
Andrew took his own life on 18th November 2005 after attending the
Brisbane registry of the family court to file application for contact
with his children. 
Read more
http://www.dadsindistress.asn.au/news302.html
<http://www.dadsindistress.asn.au/news302.html>   

Dads in Distress Forum

Visit our new Forum
http://dadsindistress.forumup.org <http://dadsindistress.forumup.org/>  

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y.bmp> 
With this Ring....

American Marriage Survey released by the National Fatherhood Initiative

Download pdf at http://www.fatherhood.org/research.asp

 

 

 

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Dad's Prayer

 
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jpg> 

Dear God

Help me climb the hill of love

knowing that the very act of facing the hill 

holding hands is an act of faith.

Holding hands in itself is an act of faith

for who am I holding hands with?

Only you know for I am still finding out.

As we climb the hill and the children come

and the children grow,

Help us still to use our faith,

to hold hands knowing that

to embrace love, is to embrace death.

For out of death comes life

and finding love is the reason

we climb the hill.

For if we find love,

our children will too.

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About Us

Mission Statement & Help Us!

 
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Mission Statement 

The Fatherhood Foundation is a charitable, non profit incorporated
association with a goal to inspire men to a greater level of excellence
as fathers, by encouraging and educating them, thereby renewing and
empowering families.

Click here for more information about us
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Help Us!

The Fatherhood Foundation believes that the key to life is giving.
That's why this newsletter is given freely without expectation.  Life is
also about relationships.  That's what being a good father is all about,
developing relationships with your loved ones.
 
If you would like to give financially to the Fatherhood Foundation,
please mail your cheque or money order to:
Fatherhood Foundation
PO Box 440
WOLLONGONG  NSW  2520
AUSTRALIA

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