June 19, 2010

 

Blog Carnival Against Child Abuse: Four-Year Anniversary Edition

Welcome to the Four-Year Anniversary Edition of The Blog Carnival Against Child Abuse. I can hardly believe that on June 19, 2006, I founded this carnival with the debut of our first-ever edition.

Trigger Warning: Understandably, the subject of child abuse can be disturbing. Please exercise appropriate self-care when reading the following posts. We all want to advocate and raise awareness, but remember to keep yourself safe!

I'll start this edition off with a post of my own that discusses Are We Leaving The Door Wide Open For Child Abuse?
It talks about some events from my son's school and our neighborhood that really got me thinking about protecting our children. I think it was one of the things that helped motivate me to start The Blog carnival Against Child Abuse.

Mike McBride, from Child Abuse Survivor, was in our very first carnival edition four years ago. Since then, he's been one of our most active monthly participants and hosts. Thanks for all you do, Mike! Here, he presents Anniversaries and says, "In honor of the 4th anniversary, I had a thought about looking back on your life on important anniversaries." Hey, great idea! Thanks, Mike!

Healing & Therapy

I feel bad that this first Healing & Therapy post was lost temporarily in the junk mail black hole of last month's host. This is a blogger, who I know from Twitter, who was encouraged to submit by another one of our valued Tweeps. The blog is called Protect Your Joy who said this when submitting: "Hope (Hopefortrauma) encouraged me to submit a post or two to your carnival. I am, honestly, very nervous to submit. Thank you for this Blog Carnival, it is always a blessing to read & an inspiration to survivors such as myself. Take care!" I'm so glad you could join us, Protect Your Joy, and I hope you will again, even if we do have technical difficulties sometimes. ;) Here's the wonderful post that shows great honesty, but also amazing hope for healing. It's called The Black Sheep, The Sick Child.

Dr. Kathleen Young
, who will be hosting our carnival in July, has submitted Learning to Love Yourself After Trauma for June. She is a regular contributor to the Healing & Therapy category from her blog, Dr. Kathleen Young: Treating Trauma in Chicago. This is a wonderful, healing post. I think any survivor could benefit from it. Thanks, Dr. Young!

Patricia Singleton presents Acknowledging Your Grief And Releasing It posted at Spiritual Journey of a Lightworker, saying, "Since I have been doing some major grieving lately having to do with my incest issues, I am revisiting older articles like this that I wrote about grief." I have found that feeling the feelings is so key to healing from childhood abuse. And grief is an enormous feelings issue. Thanks for this offering, Patricia.

Splinteredones talks about a topic near and dear to my heart: looking at the transformation from survivor to thriver. The post is called Peeking Around The Corner from Splinteredones's Blog. I'm so glad you're taking a look, Splinteredones!

Rising Rainbow presents Half Empty.........or Half Full posted at My Clouds, My Storms and Multiple Personality Disorder, saying, "It's amazing how much power can come from a change in perspective." So true! Thanks for that insight, RR. And thanks for joining us for the carnival again!

I am so sad that April_Optimist
from the wonderful, healing blog, The Thriver's Toolbox, has decided to quit blogging. But, I respect and understand her decision. She was one of the first bloggers I came across in the blogosphere who was really showing us survivors how to thrive. April was also one of the first boggers to participate in the blog carnival and now she says good bye to us all in her post, Thank You All. In her remarks, April said, "I realize I wrote this as a farewell for my own blog but maybe it makes sense to submit it for the carnival too--because I think it's important to know one can reach this point. All the things I've come to know I hope every survivor comes to know--especially that he or she matters." Thank you April, for all your contributions, and for saying goodbye. I wish you well as you continue on your Thriver's journey.

I love all the posts we get for the Healing & Therapy category. It really shows me how important this issue is (duh, right?), and how much we are all working at healing, and how far along the healing path we are all actually progressing. I especially love this post, with this great title, Just For Today from the Hope For Trauma blog. It really touched my heart. When submitting this post, Hope For Trauma commented, "I have found many things along this journey of healing. However, it is the moments of everyday that make it all worth it. Sometimes just taking a moment is what the journey is all about. "

Another Healing & Therapy post from Splinteredones called, Sitting at songha as Ego attacks, tells the painful truth. But, it also tells a powerful story of hope. I really appreciate your writing Splinteredones!

Mike McBride, returns from Child Abuse Survivor, with a post called The Importance of Fun. Doesn't that have a wonderful ring to it? We can easily get caught up in the struggles of therapy and day-to-day survival. So, it's important to remember to stop and treat ourselves to some fun. Thanks for that message, Mike!

Poetry

Our first poem was inadvertently left out of the May carnival when it bounced to the host's junk mail folder. I'm sure glad she checked that folder and forwarded it on to me. While this post contains a poem from Amy at the Amy K. Sorrells blog, it really touched me when she provided the background that explained her struggle with, then release and acceptance of...JOY. The post is called, Joy: Lilacs In The Rain. Go give it a read. It's refreshing!

Here's another poem that was meant for last month, but I'm glad to showcase it here. It's a truly sweet and beautiful poem by Hope For Trauma, who runs the blog of the same name. The poem is called Clouds & Rain.

Rising Rainbow
gives us The Innocence of Black from her blog, My Clouds, My Storms and Multiple Personality Disorder. When submitting, RR commented, "What I feared most actually held the answer to what I needed to know the most."

Rising Rainbow gives us another poem, The Distant Watcher from My Clouds, My Storms and Multiple Personality Disorder. This time she remarks, "The logic of a child blames her feelings for selling her out because it's too painful to keep the blame pointing where it belongs." So true, RR. This is a classic survivor issue and I'm glad you could work through it in your poetry.

Brown-eyed Amazon, from the blog of the same name, is new to our carnival. Welcome, Brown-Eyed Amazon! Here, she presents a very moving and well-written poem called, Masquerading Angel. Please go check out the poem and leave a comment welcoming BEA to our carnival. Thanks!

And finally for Poetry, Brown-Eyed Amazon returns with a truly heart-felt and touching poem
called His Little Girl posted at Brown-eyed amazon.

Advocacy & Awareness

Tracie tells us in her post from her blog
From Tracie, that I Tell My Kid NOT to Obey Adults. She remarks, "This is something that I just happened to have scheduled to post today. I hope it works for the carnival. I'm so excited about it being the 4 year anniversary. Thanks for all the hard work you have done over the last 4 years. You are amazing!" I think your post is perfect for the carnival, Tracie, and I think YOU are amazing for teaching your child that she has the right to choose whether or not anyone touches her for any reason. Kudos!

I just love the post submitted from Kate at Kate 1975's blog! It's called her Links Page/Resources For Survivors and it's a super cool resource list that has all kinds of helpful links we can use. It's got some great articles linked, covering healing topics like self-esteem, grounding and comfort skills. There are also some lesser-known topics covered, such as clutter issues, mother-daughter sexual abuse and therapist abuse. What a lot of work you have done, Kate! And what a valuable resource. Thanks for providing it.

Aftermath

From his blog, Thoughts Along The Road to Healing, Dan L Hays talks about the importance of knowing when to say goodbye in, Know When to Fold 'Em. I think this is an especially important life skill for child abuse survivors to learn, as many of our parents and members of our families of origin are toxic. Dan says, "This post is about letting go when it's time, and how different people handle it differently. But there might come a time when it's just necessary to say 'goodbye!'"

Speaking of Dan, he was the original host for this month. With travel plans getting in the way, he and I could not come up with a Friday this month that would work for both of us. But, then I found out that this month marked four years of our carnival and this was to be our anniversary edition, so I was pleased with the outcome that I would host June and Dan will host coming up in September. Dan wants to do an Inner Child themed edition, which I think is a great idea! As many of you know, this is one of my favorite survivor/thriver topics to talk about.

I hope Colleen, from,
Surviving by Grace, won't mind if I run her post now, as it is an Inner Child themed post. It's called Learning to Play and I think it's just wonderful! I'm so glad you've discovered the importance of play, Colleen! And, don't worry; there are lots of inner child topics to post about. I promise I'll help you with some ideas come September, if you need any. ;)

I was tempted to put this next submission under the poetry category, because it does, indeed, contain a poem. But, it is about a huge survivor aftermath issue: guilt. Therefore, I left it under this category where the blogger had submitted it. It comes from Leslie,
at Leslie's Illusions, and it's called Ashes of Abuse: Guilt. Leslie is new to our carnival. Welcome, Leslie! About her post, Leslie says, "Though I did not mention it in this post, I am a survivor of childhood abuse. I'm grateful for the blogging world that enables me to connect and share with other survivors." And we are grateful that you are sharing and joining us for the carnival. Thanks, Leslie!

Protect Your Joy from Protect Your Joy's blog, talks about the important issue of Self-Injury and her achievement of being self-injury free for 50 days. Kudos to you, Protect Your Joy! Thanks for sharing with us. The post is called, When I'm The Assailant.

Survivor Stories

Rick Belden presents broken bones and the father wound posted at poetry, dreams, and the body, saying, "Hi Marj,
I see that you're hosting this month. Don't know if you've chosen a theme yet, but I thought this post I wrote back in November might be timely with Father's Day coming up." Although we didn't do a specific Father's Day theme this month, Rick's post is certainly timely. I've always appreciated Rick's moving poetry. For this post--while it does contain a powerful poem--I also appreciate Rick sharing some commentary and background. Thanks, Rick!

Our next post was submitted by Virginia who writes for at Tamara's House, which is a residential healing facility for female survivors of childhood sexual abuse, located in Saskatchewan, Canada. Awesome! Welcome to the carnival, Tamara's House! In this post, A Survivor's Triumph, a survivor they call "Rain" tells her story as a past resident of this healing facility. Thank you for sharing.

Finally, Tracie--who was our wonderful host for the carnival in May--has the courage to tell her own poignant survivor story in: From Tracie: Tracie's Story posted at From Tracie.

That concludes this anniversary edition. I don't think we have any theme lined up yet, but the host for next month is Dr. Kathleen Young, Dr. Kathleen Young: Treating Trauma in Chicago. Submit your blog article to the next edition of The Blog Carnival Against Child Abuse by using our carnival submission form. Thank you all for your wonderful support and participation. You are the ones who make this carnival a continued success! Now, go forth and click links, read, and leave supportive comments at these blogs, won't you? I know you will and I thank you!

Labels: , , , , , , , , , , , ,


Comments:
As usual, it looks like I have some good reading to do over the next few days. Thanks for hosting and congratulations on the 4th Anniversary of the Carnival.
 
Great job as always of organizing and pulling all of this month's contributions together, Marj, especially given that you've obviously had your hands full with many other things lately. And congratulations on keeping this carnival going for four whole years. That, in and of itself, is an amazing accomplishment worth celebrating.
 
Great posts in this edition. I swear one of these days I will submit something, but until then, I am gaining strength from all of you that post.

Thank you!

And thank you Marj for keeping this going. I know its not always the easiest thing to pull together when life gets "busy" but I for one truly appreciate the work and thought that goes into these posts.

Hope you're doing well my friend. As for me...well...Maui is calling my name! We leave Monday morning and come back Sunday evening! YAY I need it SOOO badly.

Be well my friend
 
Colleen: Thanks for reading. I know April is sure to have many who miss her...and wish her well. *hugs backatcha!*

Patricia: Thanks...and thanks for doing all that reading.

Rick: Thank you. Yeah. I got pretty excited and I have been celebrating! ;)

Jade: Thanks for all your kind words. Oooo! Maui! I went to the big island of Hawaii and Kuai on my honeymoon. Would love to go back some day. You have a wonderful, relaxing time.
 
I'm excited to get into this carnival and start reading! Great job getting all of these pulled together Marj! Thank you for all your hard work!
 
Thank you, Tracie! And thank you for reading.
 
I am gonna miss this month as there is hardly an internet in the woods on my way and I hardly get access ever. However it seems you do a brilliant job again. Love from my walk to myself
 
Sorry I missed submitting. It's been a strange month for me. Congratulations on 4 years!
 
The Let Go...Let Peace Come In Foundation is a newly formed nonprofit with a mission to help heal and support adult survivors of childhood sexual abuse worldwide. We are actively seeking adult survivors who would be willing to post a childhood photo and caption, their story, or their creative expressions to our website www.letgoletpeacecomein.org. By uniting survivors from across the globe we can help provide a stronger and more powerful voice to those survivors who have not yet found the courage to speak out. We also have a prepared a youtube video that can be viewed at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b4PDC03Gl2k. Together we can; together we should; together we NEED to stand up and be counted. Please visit our site for more details on how you can send us your submissions.

Thank you for everything you do!

Gretchen Paules
Administrative Director
Let Go...Let Peace Come In Foundation
111 Presidential Blvd., Suite 212
Bala Cynwyd, PA 19004
 
((((Marj))))
I feel you are in need of a hug.
 
Great job Marj! I loved it.

I enjoyed all the posts and added some new blogs to my google reader.

I also "advertised" the blog carnival in my recent post "Ashes of Abuse: On the Bookshelf" because I wanted to share this wonderful support resource with others. It was the best compliment I could think of to give you and the best way to say thanks too!
 
Thank you all for leaving your comments. I am on vacation. I will respond to each of you individually as soon as I return. Thanks!
 
Thanks for being such a great host! I appreciate all the hard work!

- Marie (Coming Out of the Trees)
 
Hope you and the fam has a wonderful trip girly. Lord knows you deserve it!
 
Thanks, Marie! And thanks for stopping by the carnival.

Hi, Jade! Yes, we had a wonderful visit with friends. How was your trip in paradise?
 
Paula: Oh! Thanks for stopping by even with your limited Internet access. I appreciate that. I've been thinking of you and hoping your "walk" is going well and very fulfilling for you.

Paul: I'm sorry you missed it, too. But, I sure know how those strange months can go. Thanks for those congrats and for being part of it. Thinking of you. *safe hugs*

Gretchen/LGLPCI: Thanks for stopping by with the information and kind words. I will check out that video.

JBR: Awww! Thanks for that hug. ((((((((backatcha!))))))

Leslie: That was so nice of you! Thanks for the compliment and for promoting the blog carnival. I'm so glad you could join us and I sure hope you will again.
 
Thank you so much for listing me on here, and under poetry, to boot! I'm so grateful for you and all you do on the web for survivors. It is a true privilege "knowing" you and everyone on here. This is a fabulous post, and I can't wait to dig into all the links here. Huges and mercies to you, dear one!
 
Amy: What sweet sentiments. Thank you! And thanks for stopping by and reading!
 
I think you may be interested in this blog... www.kidsrightsfirst.blogspot.com...my sister was sexually abused and her two step-sons are being sexually abused by their biological mother. They are fighting to put an end to the sexual abuse of children by fighting for children to have more rights.
 
Post a Comment



<< Home

This page is powered by Blogger. Isn't yours?