It’s been said, “While we try to teach our children all about life. Our children teach us what life is all about”. A lesson that often comes with very unintended consequences.
Few will argue there are responsibilities in life more important than the care, safety and guidance of a child. They are a reflection of ourselves and the legacy we leave for the future of the world. Yet, not a moment goes by that a child isn’t being neglected, used or abused somewhere in America. These are rarely children of desperate parents under extreme conditions. Instead, they make up a growing population of highly conflicted parents, lost in a maze of red tape, legal battles, and false perceptions. Each firing back at the other a bloody salvo of harassments, accusations, and alienations - all in a “just” right to wage war “in the best interest” of their children.
Regrettably, there are no magic “happy” pills to make families get along, anymore than there are laws that will be perfectly fair to everyone; much less, a single best way to raise a child. So while we’ve made tremendous advances and enjoy their many benefits; and despite the increasing number of laws and attorneys, we are no closer as a society to effectively raise children than when we first painted animals on the wall by the light of a sacred fire.
But there is always hope for a better tomorrow and hard work to make it so. And that is just what the Children’s Rights Council offers in its Shared Parenting & Equal Access to Kids (SPEAK) program. Composed of 12 modules on various topics of parenting education, SPEAK addresses in depth several issues in complement to shared parenting after divorce or separation, including such courses as: financial child support; domestic violence; navigating they system of family law; self-esteem and empowerment; and alternative parenting. These modules are designed as contracted services for courts, government agencies, and the general community in concert with the provision of access services. In short, SPEAK helps people become better parents – truly a goal in the “best interest” of any child.
“If our American way of life fails the child, it fails us all.” - Pearl S. Buck
