The Lighthouse is a home away from home for mums to come together and talk about what it means to be a mother. To open up and share and create powerful connections.

In the year I have spent writing about parenting, publicly encouraging women to speak out about their experiences of parenting, and also attempting to be a support person to as many mothers as I can – I have seen time and time again how much talking and having someone who will listen has helped.

I have heard strangers who I have given my phone number to say “I feel so much better” after twenty minutes on the phone talking about their fears for their children and themselves. I have had thousands and thousands of emails that have ended with “I just needed to say that”.

I don’t believe this small, grass-roots event is the answer to all of our challenges. But I do believe that making our world smaller by sharing our stories helps us not just survive the hard days, but thrive on the better days.

Hearing the real lived experience of another mother is a reminder that you’re not alone, but also that you have tools in your kete that you can share. That you have a worldview that is shaped by not always having the full story. That you can change that by listening and sharing.

Along with my dear friends Gem and Manda and the amazing support of Mel and Mother's Network Wellington we are putting on a small grass-roots event to begin to bring this kaupapa of sharing and listening into action.

Thanks to the support of Mother's Network Wellington we will have police-vetted baby sitters available to look after your tamariki while they play in the room next to the ballroom where we will korero. You are welcome to bring your babies and bigger babies in with you of course - we just have the option available for toddlers and older children if you'd like some space to talk uninterrupted. But we are totally child-friendly - your babies are absolutely welcome, whatever makes you feel comfortable!

We're calling it The Lighthouse after a beautiful image that a reader sent me. We can all share our light and guide each other home when we're lost in the storm of parenting.

I would like to invite any mothers who can make it to join us on Saturday 2 July from 2.30pm till 4.30pm to sit down together and share our stories with each other. We have a few guest speakers, we will hear them and then break into groups to korero about what it means to be a mother. What it’s like to live in our shoes, in extraordinary ordinariness. This event, to be held in central Wellington, will be the first of its kind. We hope you will join us by filling in the form below - let's see what we can build together.

We're open to helping organise this event anywhere in New Zealand. Just let us know how we can help you by emailing lighthousemamas@gmail.com. If you'd like to support this event by making a donation so we can buy coffee and other necessities - please let us know. If you want to sponsor this event or provide products for it - please let us know! All queries to lighthousemamas@gmail.com.

Emily
Gem
Manda
Mel
Mother's Network Wellington

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Here's a blog post describing what we're trying to do here: http://www.emilywrites.co.nz/introducing-the-lighthouse-series/