FACT project: A Family

We come every week as a family to the My Time Centre. We are a family that is trying to manage a number of issues. Learning together has made us understand that we have each other and that is the most important thing. We get a combination of counselling, family discussion and take part in learning from each other. We share our problems and work as a family to solve them and as many of the problems require patience to resolve we learn how to appreciate living now and the beauty of what we have although it is very little. We have learnt how to believe in each other and parents to believe in their children and the children to believe in their parents.

We have learnt respect of each others. Believing in your children brings out the best in them. We do have a history as a family with many problems and we still are awaiting decisions that are out of our hands but we have learnt to strengthen our religion as a family. This religion of peace and forgiveness heals us and comforts everyday. We know we are doing the right thing and we are working together to have a future.

“My name is Chalak, and as a Kurdish man it was knew to me to talk as a family, this does not happen in Iraq. It is a new experience to me and to speak about my emotions is something I have learnt. We as a family work in garden and have built and Islamic Garden”.

My daughter has developed her writing skills and I have learnt to relax more. Chalak and our daughter have painting skills and spend time drawing pictures together. My Time provide a combination of emotional support and learning which I have never experienced.

This has been our life line as although I have status to live in UK and my daughters are British Citizens, Chalak is still an asylum seeker and this has meant we have to wait for a decision by the Home Office. Michael, Amra and Sofia have taught us to campaign and write letters about our case.

For me the big thing is Chalak’s English is now good, when he came to My Time it was very poor and now he can express his emotions and he is able to understand the family better. He has learnt practical skills and will be in a better position to get a job when he gets status. The FACT programme has given us choices and given us hope and taught us that a family has itself and that is very precious and special.