My family showed me the most wonderful Mother’s Day I’ve ever had last month, and I want to make this weekend so special for my husband. Maybe we’ll go out for breakfast, lunch and dinner. Maybe we’ll relax and garden. Maybe we’ll go to Six Flags. Maybe we’ll go to the local Mutton & Mead Festival, because clearly, my family does well with those sorts of things:
I know it will be wonderful to be together, and I know that we will be celebrating the beauty of fatherhood. With Father’s Day on the brain, I can’t help but think about the stories I’ve read recently about child grooms in Nepal. My husband is a happy father, and he was more than ready to become one. He’s also a hero in the eyes of his children – for his consistent love, devotion, humor and sense of adventure. The #childgrooms of Nepal are heroes too. They are forced into marriage at shockingly young ages, and yet they are working to save the next generation from their terrible plight. To end the suffering.
(Photo credit: CARE/Carey Wagner)
He was so young when he was married, that he barely remembers it. Yadev is still resentful and angry that his marriage forced him to abandon his schooling. Today, he works with CARE to fight and end child marriage in Nepal. CARE also interviewed a man named Parashuram who was forced to get married at the tender age of nine! He was so young and nervous that he wet himself at his own wedding because he didn’t know how to untie the ceremonial garment in order to use the bathroom. At just 12-years-old, he was under pressure to produce a child, even though he hadn’t hit puberty yet. He said, “I couldn’t do what was expected of me as a married man.” No one should be expected to become a father at age 12.
(Photo credit: CARE/Carey Wagner)
CARE is a global humanitarian organization that fights poverty by empowering girls and women. CARE is committed to its mission to serve individuals and families in the poorest communities in the world, and seeks a world of hope, tolerance and social justice. CARE seeks a world where poverty has been overcome, and people live in dignity and security.
(Photo credit: CARE.org)
• Strengthening capacity for self-help
• Providing economic opportunity
• Delivering relief in emergencies
• Influencing policy decisions at all levels
• Addressing discrimination in all its forms
One of the reasons CARE was able to reach thousands of people with life-saving relief so soon after the devastating April 25th earthquake, is because they have been working closely with the people of Nepal since 1978. One of their fears is that the earthquake will further isolate rural communities, and in turn, intensify the economic pressure that is fueling child marriage.
(Photo credit: CARE.org)
How can you help? Spread information. Visit the Child Grooms of Nepal page HERE, where you can view the report and voice your support by signing a pre-drafted letter to your members of congress. Share this post. Share posts just like it that you may see on blogs and social media. Urge your loved ones to visit this page and voice their support. We can stand alongside the men in Nepal who are fighting to stop child marriage, and we can join CARE’s efforts in raising awareness to the cause.
It is so sad that there are things like this going on around the world but good to know that we can help make a difference. Happy Fathers Day to Cassidy and I just know that you’ll make it one amazing one for him.
It was pretty awesome. I hope you had a great weekend, my dear!
And yes, so sad that this is going on and not many people know about the #childgrooms as much as the brides.
It is truly sad that this still happens in some cultures. I couldn’t imagine handing off my children like that, so young. Thank you for helping to raise awareness about this Tamara!
I know! It’s just a few years away from Scarlet’s age, it seems. Child brides and child grooms…Sigh.
Thanks for reading, my dear!
Aw, Tamara I cannot even imagine, but truly can’t thank you enough for spreading awareness for this here. And I am of course wishing Cassidy, a very wonderful Father’s Day now, too!!
Wish Kevin a Happy Belated from us!
I honestly can’t imagine, and I can’t believe it’s the reality for so many!
Wow. Thank you for sharing this, Tamara. I had no idea this was going on with the boys in Nepal. I will share…
Thank you so much! I really had no idea either, before I was researching this post.
Sounds like a wonderful organization! That you for informing us!
Melanie @ meandmr.com
Thanks so much! They seem to be doing such big and great things.
I always think of girls as getting married off too young — I didn’t realize that this was a problem with boys as well! What pressure that must put on them. Father a child before you even hit puberty! That’s crazy. I can only imagine the stresses this puts on these boys.
I hadn’t realized it either! And it must be so hard for boys. I know even teen boys sink so hard under peer pressure sometimes. It’s so rough.
Oh my goodness 9 years old!! That is not right. I get so upset at all of the injustice in the world and especially when it affects children. Great job on raising awareness on this issue Tamara! I hope your husband has a wonderful weekend and feels extra appreciated and happy!
It’s the worst. You’re so right. When it affects any living being, it’s tough. But children!!
Thanks so much for chiming in.
Checking out this site now… thanks for spreading awareness! <3 – http://www.domesticgeekgirl.com
Thanks for checking it out! xoxo
we are so privileged and steeped in our own comforts on our small little side of the planet. So unaware of the suffering in this world, and there is a lot. A lot. Breaks my heart to know this exists — breaking the spirit of a child so young. There’s just no excuse for it at all. Thanks for sharing.
So true. I think we’re only aware of the tip of the iceberg, really. It astounds me.
Wow, great awareness post, Tamara. I didn’t realize this was still going on. Sad.
I hadn’t either – thanks so much for stopping to read and share awareness. So sad!
Signing! Signing! 🙂 Always willing to support! And if it only takes a signature… Very easy 🙂
You’re the best!!
Its funny – I’ve heard of child brides, but not grooms. Clearly this is an issue – thanks for the informative post.
I agree – I hadn’t heard of it at all. It definitely made me do extra reading to see how I could help.
I had never heard of child grooms before. I can’t imagine how hard it is for these young boys having to get married at such a young age. I’ll be following the link to draft a letter to my local congress members.
Thank you so much, Sonya!
Child marriage is heartbreaking, but raising awareness about child brides and grooms is the first step to ending it. Oh, but to be married at nine years old is truly heartbreaking.
I can’t even imagine! Scarlet is almost six and still thinks she can marry Cassidy.
What’s going on in the world is breaking my heart right now. That there is so much injustice far and so close, with people being killed in a church (!!!). Sigh. But yes, this also needs to end and righteffingnow. Great post, Tamara. xxoo
The church thing.. there are almost no words. Like… are we all going to survive to raise our wonderful kids to be.. better?
I hope so.
Wow what a story. Glad you could share it on your platform. There are so many stories like this that we never hear about. Hope you have great Father’s Day with Cassidy!
Exactly! Stuff we never hear about. That’s what drew me to this story – people often think about child brides and not child grooms.
My goodness! I can’t even begin to imagine. I’ve heard of so many arranged marriages and I’m sure most of them are not happy stories. I don’t have enough knowledge about child marriage but I’m aware that it happens even here in the Philippines but only in a few tribes in the mountains. I hope it stops!
Me too! I imagine it can happen anywhere and I’m not sure why people don’t know about it the way we do about child brides. I had no idea until I wrote this post!
Can you imagine Des becoming a husband in six years? And James would have been married for almost five years already. Tragic. Thanks for sharing – we need to know so that we can help make a change.
Eek, no!!! And James would already be a father, possibly. It’s so nauseating. Thanks for the perspective!
Oh, man… That is so incredibly heartbreaking 🙁 Thanks so much for sharing this, Tamara… I watched the video and find it so hard to believe that anyone could get married so young! I mean, my goodness… What was I thinking about at age 12? Certainly NOT marriage… Thanks for raising awareness and for sharing this post here. I hope you and your family have a very happy Father’s Day and that you enjoy your time together, regardless of what you do (though that Mead Fest sounds pretty fantastic) 🙂 XOXO
I think at age 12.. I still thought I’d marry Tim Curry! No joke there.
We missed the Mutton and Mead festival! Boo! The weather was iffy and so was Cassidy’s desire to go there…
But we had a great breakfast together.
We always hear about this issue with respect to girls…I never considered that it happened to boys too. Thank you for sharing this Tamara! Its so hard to even imagine…my boys at 18 and 14 are nowhere near ready to take on the responsibility of a family…I can’t even fathom that at age 9. What a horrible situation!
Wishing Cassidy a Happy Father’s Day!
I hadn’t heard of it either!
Your kids would potentially be fathers by now! And Des.. married in six years? No way on earth.
Hope you guys had a great weekend!
This is the saddest shit ever.. How awful.. I wonder what their justification/reasoning for that is? Why does that make sense ever? In any culture.. I understand MAYBE 15 or so since at that age you’ve hit puberty but freakin’ 12 and below? NO! That’s a BAD Nepalese! [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tKiSN-TBEAc] Lol. I hope they are able to reach those remote areas and educate them as to the error of their ways. Yes, error! I am usually tolerant and respectful of cultural differences and traditions but that is a NO-NO! Hope Cassidy has an AWESOME Father’s Day 🙂 Have fun making it fun Tam Tam!! 🙂 -Iva
I don’t get the justification at all!!
Thanks for the South Park clip – ha! You really do find the best ones. I had one yesterday of a baby goat dressed as a sunflower, falling asleep in a flower pot.
I don’t get it either and honestly I don’t want to, it is a tradition that just needs to die! LOL You’re welcome, South Park always has relevant clips. 🙂 I really do try my best to find the best one – timing is everything hahahaha.. LOL!! That’s too cute – reminds me of my dumb cat.. He’s amusing when he’s not popping in inappropriate places which he hasn’t done – as of yet. I FEEL LIKE THERE ISN’T ENOUGH HOURS IN THE DAY TAM TAM?!
That is absolutely horrible! I cannot even imagine allowing my kids away from be before 18, let alone marriage at such a young age! Thank you so much for such an amazing post! Be sure to come by and share it on the linky Sunday night! Happy dad’s day to Cassidy and hope that you all have an amazing day!
I hear you! Even 18 seems incredibly young but that makes a ton more sense than age 8!
I hope you guys had a great weekend!
Definitely heard of child brides but not child grooms, at least the term (though I’ve heard it happening). It’s terrible when I hear things like this—they’re just children!
I’d never heard of it at all! Totally just kids! Thanks so much for reading about it.
Thanks for this post Tamara – and I will be sharing this. No child should be forced into marriage – male or female.
Agreed. No human should, but the fact that it’s such young children is so sickening!
Thanks for sharing this, I have to say I didn’t know much about this.. Important topic, I will share forward!
Thank you so much! And I knew nothing either, which is why I was compelled to post about it. It surprised me a lot!
Thanks for sharing about this organization. We are so fortunate in the US and take so much for granted. I checked them out and love that SHARE is doing their part to reduce global poverty.
We really do – it’s such an important insight.
Thanks for checking them out!
Wow. I had no idea at all. You only hear about child brides and girls that are in this situation. Thank you for sharing this.
Thank you for reading it!
Yes, I had no idea as well.
That is just insane. I look at my youngest, who is almost 8 and he’s just a baby.
I know! My “baby” is only three, but in five years, they’d consider that marriage age. So insane. My daughter is only five and still thinks she’ll marry her father!
This is just so sad, and honestly I don’t even know what to say. It breaks my heart that things like this go on, it’s crazy.
Oh yeah – I totally hear you. I have no idea what to say. I hope my post helps even a few people spread awareness of this horror.
Tamara,
Unfortunately, child marriages are a reality in some parts of the world. Thank you for giving this particular story attention and awareness.
So true. Thank you for reading my post!
This is sad. I had no idea that little boys were forced into marriage, I have heard of little girls, but not boys. It makes me sick to my stomach. Thank you for spreading awareness, Tamara.
XOXO
I had no idea either! And as a parent with one of each, I think of them both as LIGHTyears away from being ready. Just so sad.
I had no clue this was happening. Thank you for telling me about this and so happy your hubby had a good father’s Day.
Thank you! He had a great Father’s Day!
I agree – I had no clue at all. It’s so sobering to find out.
I love these photos. This is a great organization too.
Thank you! And I agree – CARE is so amazing. They’re changing lives.
Really sad that this practice still exists. It is terrible that children are robbed of their childhood.
I totally agree – no one should be forced into marriage, but mere children should top that list!
CARE is such a great organization. We are in such a happy bubble over here, we don’t think about the other issues worldwide
CARE rocks! I know. I get it about that bubble.
SO sad! I know it is there culture to be forced into marriage, CARE sounds like a great way to help this people that are in such desperate need.
I really love CARE – the more I find out about them!
I had no idea this was happening to boy children too. Prayers for the CARE team to make a difference
The CARE team is awesome. And yes, I had no idea it happened to boys either!
It’s great that Yadev is so passionate and determined to help others avoid the same situation. CARE seems like a wonderful organization with a great mission.
I agree about Yadev and about CARE! I hope they continue to make a huge difference.
There are people who live such trying lifestyles and we complain about the simple things . Yadev is in fact a hero as he could have chosen to be bitter for his entire life but instead he rose above all adversities and helped others
So true. Yadev is making a huge difference and trying to change the lives of others.
Glad you had a nice weekend. So important to be aware of the plight of children.
this is just so sad and I find it card to comprehend that in this century this is still happening. We teach our children to be independent and I can’t imagine any other way.
I feel the same way – very hard to comprehend.
I can’t believe this still happens in some cultures. Children need to be just that…children! CARE sounds like a great way to raise awareness.
So true. As a mother, I find that the most beautiful thing I know is just children being children – happy and whole. That’s what makes this so painful to hear about.
It’s so hard to understand this when we don’t have anything at all like it here (and I’m glad we don’t). We are very, very lucky.
I’m so glad we don’t have anything here as well.. and so sad it’s happening and so many of us don’t know.
WOW I cannot even begin to imagine going through this – so scary and we are blessed in this country.
It’s so true. We are totally in this blessed part of the world. I had no idea about the child grooms.
I have read a lot about child wives, but not grooms. This is eye-opening! I guess it really does go both ways. Unfortunately, these kids have no say and their parents often don’t see it as wrong because it was part of their cultural upbringing. CARE is a great org. Sharing now!
Glad to hear your take about CARE. That means good things.
And it’s interesting that you haven’t read about child grooms either. So glad awareness is being raised. May it go far.
Thanks for helping to spread the word about this! I had no idea!
Thanks, Rabia! And yeah – it’s amazing that we didn’t know. I had never known before this post.
Wow, I had no idea about the child grooms of Nepal. What a sad story! Thanks for sharing… I’m going to read more about it.
Thanks so much! I found that once I started reading, I couldn’t stop. It’s amazing that we didn’t know about this.
That is shockingly sad! I hope we see practices like that end in our lifetime!
I couldn’t agree more! A beautiful sentiment.
I did not know much about this issue, but it sounds like a real problem. I had no idea!
I hadn’t either – it’s so shocking that it exists, and also that we don’t know about it. I’m so happy CARE is making a difference!
I hadn’t heard of this before. Thanks for sharing this information. I totally support this cause!
I hadn’t either! And thanks so much for reading and supporting.
OMG this literally breaks my heart. I have heard of child brides but never heard of child grooms. I could never imagine. Thank you for sharing
Me too! So heartbreaking. And so many of us had no idea – had only heard about child brides. I hope awareness keeps growing!
I’ve never heard of child grooms before. Both are just as terrible and glad there are communities reaching out to stop it.
It is so sad that this happens. Time to raise awareness!
This is so sad, what we do to our children. Both girls and boys. Heart-breakingly sad. Thanks for writing about this, I had never heard of it, getting the word out, educating, hopefully that will change the world.