From the Editor’s Desk
In 2012, as a New Year issue, Family Mantra covered the topic of work life balance where we looked at balancing the needs of family with the demands of building successful careers. Two years later we look at a similar issue but this time focusing on a topic that has deeper effects on the family – absentee fathers.
The pressures of high powered careers, the global market place, high paying jobs etc. has led to an increased number of men spending an exponentially larger amount of time at work or travelling on work. The collateral damage in this rat race are the children who feel confused and long for their dad and the wife who deals with the stress of being mother and father to the children.
The physical presence of a father is not a sufficient factor for a healthy family, but it is definitely a necessary one. ‘Missing in action’ by Ivan Kostka is a story of hope after three generations of absentee fathers.
Anil and Sunitha’s moving story ‘A Close Call’ of how close Anil came to losing his life and in the process finding the joy of his family will touch your heart.
With a new year comes a renewed sense of hope, optimism and opportunity to re-focus on goals. Prabhan shares with us how it is ‘Better late than never’ to make your home a fun place for the family to return to. His ‘Reflections’ bring all these aspects together reminding us that if we are keen to make a difference in the lives of our children, we need to be there when they need us.
The Ghar wapsi movement has been the cause for wide spread debate and unrest. Chitra debates this from another angle in the ‘My Opinion’ column – If we are to do Ghar Wapsi why only for religion? Let us do it for all areas of society- transport, communication, industry, governance, food and politics.
This new year we bring you a new series called Marriage Masala from the book of the same title by Rod and Ruthie Gilbert. It features ‘spices’ to give fun and inspiration to any couple willing to blend them into their own unique relationship. We hope you enjoy these flavors as a couple.
The Editorial team of Family Mantra wishes you a blessed and promise filled New Year! If you know anyone who will find help and hope in the content we publish, please pass on your copy to that person.
Write to us at fm@kutumbcommunications.org and we will gladly send your friend a copy with no obligation to you. If you choose to make a donation when you request us to gift a subscription to a friend, it will help us reach more people. You can find more details of how to do so on our Subscription page.