Zena, a little girl, loses her mother. Her father remarries a woman named Wildy, who gives birth to a baby girl, Sally. The woman, who is supposed to be a good mom to the two children, mistreats Zena while admiring Sally. One day, the woman sends Zena to wash a dish in the Mississippi River. There, Providence rewards Zena for bravely bearing her misfortunes, fi lling her with wealth. Jealous, Wildy sends her own daughter to wash a dish in the river. Providence also rewards Sally but with great torment. The lesson of the tale is that we should not treat our children differently. All children deserve our attention and love.

Abstracts : p. 51-60.

Abstracts : p. 51-60.

The Orphan: A Journey to Wholeness addresses loneliness and the feeling of being alone in the world, two distinct characteristics that mark the life of an orphan. Regardless if we have grown up with or without parents, we are all too likely to meet such experiences in ourselves and in our daily encounters with others. With numerous case examples, Dr. Punnett describes how loneliness and the feeling of being alone tend to be repeated in later relationships and may eventually lead to states of anxiety and depression. The main purpose of this book is not to just stay within the context of the literal orphan, but also to explore its symbolic dimensions in order to provide meaning to the diverse experiences of feeling alone in the world. In accepting the orphan within, we begin to take responsibility for our own unique life journey, a privileged journey in which one can at some point in time say with pride, I am an orphan.