“Over 1 million children have no contact with their parents after separation.
There are 400 child contact centers in the UK but many parents and even professionals don’t even know they exist.”
- National Association of Child Contact Centres, 2021
Today is Friday serves as a conversation starter for parents, social workers, education professionals and anyone who cares about the mental health and well-being of our children. Overwhelmed by the sudden change in family circumstances, many children with separated parents struggle to cope with the feelings of loss and insecurity. Saying goodbye might become weekly occurrence for families living apart, but the agony of separation will always be devastating and unbearable.
“Mummy, why do I only see you two days a week?” asked the little girl in the book. Artful illustrations and simple yet engaging dialogue between the little girl and her mother tell a heartfelt and bittersweet story about love and resilience that resonates with thousands of families on a similar journey. The book is one of its kind with personal experience threaded throughout, offering plenty of rooms for children and grown-ups to reflect on their own issues.
The driving force behind Today is Friday
Today is Friday is a collaborative work by volunteers from different backgrounds sharing the same passion for child-focused co-parenting. This pioneering approach to modern day parenting advocates the cooperation between separated parents in bringing up their children with all the love and attention that they can give. In the past few years, Two Nests Creation has held numerous theatre workshops in local communities where families impacted by parental separation could share their experience and support each other.
A book with a mission
Circle has developed a picture book series with her team that addresses gender-based violence and family restructuring in Asia. It is one of its kind with personal experience threaded throughout, offering plenty of rooms for children and grown-ups to reflect on their own issues. The picture book “Today is Friday ” was selected in the longlisted project for the Unpunished Picturebooks Showcase 3. Selected out of 400 projects from 60 countries, it was presented to the international publishers and agents on the dPICTUS platform throughout 2022.
In Aug 2022, she launched Today is Friday Community Educational Crowdfunding Campaign to fund for the Chinese version publishing. Half of them were gifted and delivered to the families in need such as separated families, social workers and other frontline education professionals in Taiwan and Hong Kong. In the meanwhile, she will continue her master study to create picture books that resonate with thousands of families on a similar journey, especially the Asian communities in the UK.
