Mother Bridge of Love – New Book from Barefoot Books August 8, 2007

Once there were two women
Who hardly knew each other
One you do not remember
The other you call mother
Two different lives shaped to make yours one
One becoming your guiding star
The other became your sun
The first gave you life
And the second taught you to live in it
The first gave you a need for love
And the second was there to give it
One gave you nationality
The other gave you a name
One gave you the seed of talent
The other gave you an aim
One gave you emotions
The other calmed your fears
One saw your first sweet smile
The other dried your tears
The age old questions through the years;
Heredity or environment -
which are you the product of ?
Both my darling – both
And two different kinds of love!

 

‘Mother Bridge of Love’ is a new book from Barefoot books www.mybarefootbooks.com/JoannaClarke which comes out next month.  It’s a beautifully illustrated version of a well-known poem about adoption. It is geared primarily towards adoption from China but also tackles general issues around adoption, step-parents etc. Proceeds are going towards the Mother Bridge of Love institute which is run by XinRan, author of the Good Women of China and Sky Burial, an institute helping to bridge the cultural gap between China and the West and specifically helping adopted children. http://www.motherbridge.org

I am adopted myself and was reunited with my birth mother only 2 years ago. Nothing in this world can prepare you for this moment,  the journey ahead or the multitude of feelings and emotions that accompany it. We love our adoptive mothers but we also feel a profound sense of loss for our birth mothers and often a deep need to reconnect. Over recent years it has become more acceptable for Adoptees to trace there birth mothers and families, but this takes enormous courage.  Many adoptees fear that  searching for their birth mother may be seen as being disloyal and even ungrateful to their adoptive parents and searching and reuniting can be racked with feelings of guilt and pain.How wonderful to read this book, to have my own experience and feelings reinforced and validated.

 I have two mums. I love them both for what they have given me, I love them both for who they are, I will always love them both, my adoptive mum can never take the place of my birth mum, and equally my birth mum can never take the place of my adoptive mum. I have two mums and it is ok to have two mums, love is not exclusive, not even motherly love.

So beautifully and elequently written, this poem and the breathe takingly beautiful illustrations, expresses what so many adoptees feel but find so hard to put into words for others to understand.

This book has truely touch my heart and I will treasure it for a life time. This book is for all ages and I would recommend it to any adoptee old or young, but it is also a wonderful book for birth mums and adopitive mums and indeed anyone whose life is touched by adoption or who works in the area of adoption.

You can order this book at www.mybarefootbooks.com/JoannaClarke

New Moon magazine for Girls July 29, 2007

To all mums and dads and their beautiful daughters. Check out  New Moon the fantastic  magazine for girls written by girls (aged 8-14). www.newmoon.org.  Inspirational, educational, positive and informative my own daughter loves it and can’t wait for the next edition to come through the post. She carrys it every where she goes to share with all her friends. It is a breathe of fresh air – no ad’s, no pages full of hair and makeup, only real issues and real girls. In my opinion is in a class of its own amongst the other magazines for young girls. check it out at www.newmoon.org

“Girls need so much more than celebrities and fashion. Finally, a magazine that understands. Give your girl the gift of confidence.”

 

The situations a girl faces everyday can leave her feeling confused, insecure and alone. Remember what it was like for you at that age? There is even more pressure on today’s girls. And all those ad-soaked magazines filled with super-thin celebrities don’t help.

Luckily, today’s girls have an advertising-free magazine that gives them what they need to feel strong, confident and secure for life: New Moon. It’s the one magazine that knows a girl’s greatest assets are her spirit and her intelligence, not the latest pair of jeans.

Written for girls and by girls ages 8 to 14, New Moon is honest talk and inspiration from girls around the world. It’s a place where she can go to speak her mind – whether she wants to sound off about the pressures of school and friends or share her dream of being a doctor.

(quoted from New Moon website www.newmoon.com)

This weeks Barefoot Adventure – ‘The Adventures of Odysseus’ July 28, 2007

This is a fantastic book to share with older children, 8-12 yrs. The illustration are extrodinary and the stories will leave your child captivated and begging you to read on to find out what is going to happen to Odysseus next. Don’t make the mistake of thinking that your child is too old for picture books, we are never too old even as adults. Children of this age like nothing better than adventure stories of hero’s and Heroins, Quests and challenges and the ancient Greek tales of Odysseus can not be beaten.

In Maya’s words:

“It is a fantastic book with loads of amazing adventures and mythical creatures like the Cyclops and even more. The pictures are amazing. Odysseus is so clever and brave he always thinks up a clever plan to get himself out of trouble. I loved this book and will read it again. Be an adventurer and join Odysseus and his ship on his adventures around the ancient Greek islands!!!”

To buy this book go to www.mybarefootbooks.com/JoannaClarke

Exeter Steiner School – Where Education is a Journey not a Race July 27, 2007

“We shouldn’t ask: what does a person need to know or be able to do in order to fit into the existing social order?  Instead we should ask: what lives in each human being and what can be developed in him or her?”
                                                              Rudolf Steiner

If your a parent of a young child and live in the Exeter Area and are looking for an education that will nurish your child and bring out their unique individual qualities as well as equiping them with the skills and knowledge to grow and develop into healthy, well adjusted and capable adults then Exeter Steiner school could be just the place your looking for www.exetersteinerschool.com

Maybe your unsatisfied with the education your child is currently receiving and are looking for something that fits your values.  Perhaps your child is unhappy or bored with school and  needs something more creative and inspiring.

“Education is not the filling of a pail, but the lighting of a fire“   W.B. Yeats 

‘Exeter Steiner School is dedicated to offering a real and viable alternative by providing a style of education that truly embraces all aspects of the development of each individual child-social, spiritual, emotional and physical as well as intellectual. In this way we aim to inspire a passion for lifelong learning, equipping individuals with the tools they need to engage in a fast-moving world in a meaningful, wholesome and positive way. ‘ (Exeter Steiner School www.exetersteinerschool.com )

 Steiner education is renouned for its artistic and holistic methods. And children who have been Steiner educated are renouned for their self-confidence, ability to communicate well with adults and children alike, their social skills and care for the natural environment, their creative skills and their ability to think for themselves. They are also known to love school and love learning.  Given that everything they learn is taught to them in such an artistic and inspiring way this is hardly suprising.  The children are actively engaged and fascinated with what they are learning and excited to find out more. It is the fastest growing educational system in the world  with over 875 schools, 27 of which are located in the United Kingdom and Ireland.  In many countries Steiner education is State funded and places in schools are highly sought after.

Steiner or otherwise known as Waldorf education has received much publicity over recent years for its creative teaching methods and  its ability to engage children in the learning process. It has become increasing known for what are now viewed as progressive teaching methods. Many methods which are recently being developed in the state sector have been used in Steiner education for 80-90 years. in fact there has been so much interest around Steiner education even at government level that the government recently agreed plans for a Steiner/ Waldorf Academy school just outside Hereford.

In a recent Ofsted report for Wynsones one of the larger UK Steiner Schools this is what the Ofsted inspectors found of the Children’s Spiritual, moral, social, and cultural development

‘Provision for the pupil’s spiritual, moral,social and cultural development is outstanding. This is a strength of the school and recognised as such by parents. Wynstone’s pupils grow into confident, mature young people who are well prepared to go out into the adult world.  They enjoy their education and have positive views about the school. Strong personal relationships are at the heart of this success. From an early age, pupils learn to trust each other and their staff, and develop a deeply respectful and considerate attitude towards one another.  This begins in Kindergarten in the small tasks that they do for others and the care they show to their immediate circle of friends. As pupils get older this sense of responsibiliy to others deepens and extends to the wider world through fund raising activities for local and national charities.  Pupil’s behaviour and attitudes to learning are outstanding. They know exactly what is expected of them and rise to the challenge.  Pupils are encouraged to reflect on their own strengths and to pursue their interests.  They have a strong desire to learn, become self-reliant and increasingly take responsibility for their own learning. Pupils are acutely aware of their own spirituality and their empathy with the views and cultures of others is shown in their written and oral work.’

To view details of the full report go to www.ofsted.gov.uk/reports/pdf/?inspectionNumber=298233&providerCategoryID=16384&fileName=.pdf

Although this ofsted is for a bigger and more estabilished Steiner school in the UK the same philosophy and emphasis on spiritual, moral, social and cultural development runs throughout the whole Steiner movement and is in fact the basis of it. Never before has the world been so greatly in need of these very qualities as it is today. With the global problems of climate change , cultural and religious conflict and poverty among other things the world is greatly  in need of  generation of people with both the imagination to find solutions, the sense of responsibility for society and the planet and the strength of will to take action. I believe Steiner Education is a educational system which addresses just this.

To find out more about Steiner education visit:

 www.steinerwaldorf.org.uk

 www.freedom-in-education.co.uk/steiner