Freedom: Revolution Joy

Sad and disturbing news from femicide watch of the 55th death by violence after a woman in Australia. A 41 year old man who ensnared this girl when she was 15 has allegedly killed her at 21. Her aunt reports that he bit all over her body and that 6 weeks ago they begged the police for help but because it wasn’t the victim herself the police would not investigate the claims. Sherele Moody is gathering names for a petition to demand a Royal Commission into femicide, “Australia's femicide toll is one of the worst in the world. And the political expediency to create change is also one of the worst.

Something must shift - and right now the only way to make change is to have a national truth-telling on femicide.” True and sobering and I can viscerally feel the pall of living in this kind of society. That leads to a low level depression where I need to constantly remind myself that that is how the bastards win by cowering us so that we’re too frightened to raise our heads, too frightened to express joy, too frightened to speak out.

So what can we do? We can sign the petition for a Royal Commission into Femicide and we can financially support the Freedom: Revolution Joy exhibition that is currently fundraising. Both of these we can do without leaving the house, both of these make a difference.

I'm proud to be part of Freedom: Revolution Joy, a multidisciplinary regional arts project culminating in an exhibition and live dance performance in May 2027.

The project explores freedom, autonomy and survival, and the impacts of domestic and family violence and coercive control, creating space for audiences to engage with these issues through creative practice.

Projects like this rely on community support. If you'd like to back regional artists directly, you can contribute here: https://artists.australianculturalfund.org.au/s/project/a2EMn00000gl6pnMAA/freedom The Australian Cultural will match donations up to $5000 and your donation is tax deductible.

Sharing this post helps too. Thank you.

Confluence of Compassion

Confluence of Compassion is an evolving participatory, contemplative artwork. Its conception started with the prompt: Imagine living a world flooded with compassion.

Confluence used in this instance is an act or process of merging. Compassion is a worldview.

At its core, compassion is about recognising our common humanity – about seeing that we are all human with our own struggles, hopes, and needs. Knowing that, we bring a desire to care for, support, and value other people just as we would like to be cared for, valued, and supported. Not only that, it means creating whole societies in a way that everyone feels included and their needs met, defining our approach to everything from climate policy to economics.

At the dam

What if we wrote our compassion needs down, set them out to float trusting they would be received? Perhaps the clarity of the articulation would focus our minds, distilling our needs to their most elementary state.

Might it be that water from this dam and the immersed offerings of compassion find their way to other bodies of water, “that the cyclical life of rainfall - sky to earth to sky again, over and over” - could bring compassion “through cloudburst and current,” to all waters “that flowed across the earth?”

As people engage with the artwork, adding their own experiences of receiving or giving compassion, they can visually see the ripple effect of compassionate acts and the larger subtle flow on effect this has on a societal level. The natural substance to demonstrate ripples and flow is water which is why this artwork is part of the Aqua Limina exhibition. Contemplating water as a metaphor for compassion connects us to our relationship with nature allowing us to remember that the reason humans exist at all is because of water.

Please come along on 11 April to join me at the dam: Free Ticket Link

Compassion for the non-human world at Talweg dam

Sunday

On Sunday Maureen and I bussed in to town for Robert Forster’s new album launch, also a celebration of the 50th anniversary of Rocking Horse Records. Congratulations Warwick and co!!

Listening to the jingly-jangly guitar I experienced a benign sense of wellbeing associated with the many years of hearing that style of music being played by friends at home. The songs Robert played us had a theme to my ears and I think the reason they charm are because they are unabashed love songs. Nothing could be more charming than repeated declarations of love (toxic love-bombing aside). He said they were recorded with his Swedish band five years ago. I know since and perhaps during that time there have been worrisome family health matters, these songs of love may stem from that experience. I like to imagine that they may be his way of being vulnerable of sharing that love connection with family, with us.

It’s the kind of writing men can make when they decide to open up their hearts. We’ve been able to experience the spectacular and public way Nick Cave has done this. Imagine how much our world could change if more men of that generation used heart intelligence to inform their lives and the way they forge connection with minorities, women and each other. A steady positive loving regard for themselves and others. A humane masculinity.

A Man Prayer.

Meditation Lounge

Images by: Jo Fay Duncan, Lisa Behan and Saisai Luo

It felt very natural to go with the flow of the weather, the conversation, the feelings expressed. Compassion expanded to create a safe container for those in the circle. It was a rich sharing of ideas, experiences, longings, confusion and connection. In the excitement of the flow I had to calm myself to remain steady to attentively listen so each of us felt recognised for our presence in the circle. It was joyful to respond to what came up with matching meditation practices and then discuss their effect upon us. It’s always both surprising and unsurprising how quickly safety is established and the values of generosity, kindness, openness, tolerance, respect and compassion emerge connecting us to our innate goodness. These inner strengths that are undervalued in a society “where competition, invidiousness, status-seeking and authoritarianism prevail.” In the face of these societal urgings meditation, over time, allows us to reconnect to ourselves, to gain self-knowledge, to be steady, to have our own back and to be true to ourselves. A meditation lounge reminds us that this is possible in any moment we choose.

BE HERE NOW.

It’s a way of clicking in to the present.

The Meditation Lounge was one of the offerings at the inaugural day retreat hosted by Retreats Stradbroke Island at the

Point Lookout Hall on 12 April 2025. The next wellbeing retreat is scheduled for 12 July, 2025.

• Quote from Philip Slater’s The Pursuit of Loneliness

Brook Book

My 2024 project is a tribute to Kedron Brook which has been my enduring connection to nature since moving to the Grange in 1992.

BrookBook will be a collection of writing, nature art, sketches, photography and community collaboration.

For more than 30 years I have been wondering up and down along the banks of Kedron Brook and the surrounding suburbs.

In that time I have seen the Grange Forest Park flourish, watched in awe when the Brook flooded and felt unsettled when the waterline diminished during drought.

So many poignant memories of adventures with my daughters - picnics, exploring the forest and waterways, catching gudgeons, and spying on nature.

Hours and hours of walking alone and with friends as a young uncertain woman wrestling with the societal expectations of the roles of mother and wife to now as a more confident older woman.

Kedron Brook has been a refuge, a teacher and a place of solace. It was a constant source of inspiration in my six years of attending the Brisbane Institute of Art . This inspiration led to the ideation of Mindsettle which was launched when I turned 50.

2024 may be the last year that I live in close proximity to the Brook so this Brook Book will be a reflection on the way it has enabled my connection to creative flow, calm, and my mental and physical fitness.

You can follow this work/play in progress on Instagram @BrookB00K

Thank You,

Lisa

Hospitable

These are some of my memories and reflections on the guest experiences in Hiromi Hotel: Heartbeat at Splendour in the Grass 2022.

Connection Mindmap

Artwork: Lisa Behan

On Thursday night I enjoyed a brilliant conversation with J and G as I showed them how to fingerknit, they are both from UTS and had been working to set up the Science Forum. We talked about the promulgation of fear, neuropsychology, neuroplasticity, how to offset the negativity bias of the brain and their expert knowledge of algae. J spoke about how he had found a slower way to live when he was stuck in Portugal in the early days of the pandemic.

On Friday I had a long chat with T and R, T has just graduated with honours and was excited to be taking up a job offer with the CSIRO. The topics we talked about roved from koala research, to other ways of living outside of societal norms, to relationships and love, and being consumed by consuming.

B and partner revisit Hiromi Hotel to continue their finger knitting. On the previous day they hid their balls of fibre deep in the installation. B spends time incorporating the leftover pieces of other people’s knitting into his then graduates to knitting a strand using 10 balls of wool. He is totally committed to making a significant contribution to the installation. After a few hours he has created a thick colourful rope that is nine metres long. He carefully considers where to install this. We talk about art and creativity, he tells me his mother is an artist who creates murals and teaches. B likes painting, he shares some images with me from his graduating project three years ago. Both paintings explore the themes of sin and evil, they provoke questions about how our society venerates and encourages some of these - especially greed, lust, gambling - distracting us away from thinking and purpose.

I observe a group of three enter Hiromi Hotel, by the time they reach me at the back they all have blissful smiles. I comment on the transformation and ask them how the space makes them feel or think, they respond with Calm, Wonderful, Amazing. I continue asking others who say that Hiromi Hotel is: a Refuge, Neurodivergently Delightful, Zen, Peaceful, Collaborative and a Safe Space. There were many conversations about judging people and its ruinous effects on psyches and relationships. I heard people reminding each other that Splendour is a judgement-free zone.

I have been absolutely thrilled to witness and encourage people to feel calm, centred, creative, self-regulated, accepted, loved and valued. It’s so evident that these spaces work and should be available. As always the challenge is how to fund them and pay the workers.

Hiromi Hotel was a spontaneous sharing of skills, knowledge, stories, humanity, joy, connection and satisfaction.

Hotel comes from the Latin Hosptium, also the base for hospitable which is be to welcoming to visitors or guests and can also mean a pleasant and favourable environment for living. At Splendour in the Grass 2022, Hiromi Hotel was both

Image: Salty Dog Media

I’m in the purple cap soaking up the joy of our guests

Mental Health Week 2021

One of the ways I help my mind settle is to walk in nature and to share videos of this experience. Last week I started a five week artist residency that affords time and space to explore new digitally accessible work as a powerful catalyst for people to slow down, feel centred and invoke a deep sense of release.

Hand Bent Banana Arts and Health Centre is a new arts hub in Tallebudgera Valley providing an artistic way of looking at the world, through connection with the natural environment. It is a unique place-based Centre in the Hinterland region of the Gold Coast and fills a gap to learn about the diverse landscape and geology, connections to the land and our disappearing agricultural heritage.

Mindsettle is partnering with Hand Bent Banana to bring the benefits of nature, usually found outside, to people whose ability to access nature is limited. We have the opportunity to help negate the disengagement people have been experiencing as a result of the pandemic measures and to help quell the growing sense of isolation in our community.

It was invigorating to explore the different terrains of Talweg, the attached video gives you a sense of my first day traversing the property. The discovery walk stimulated ideas I can play with over the coming weeks in collaboration with my fellow artists and with Karleen Gwinner the founder of Hand Bent Banana Arts and Health Centre. But for now I hope you enjoy the sights and sound of Talweg and that they help your mind settle.

Gathering

In between lockdowns in July, ten acolytes gathered for ten days of movement and learning.

Ten Women gathered together to unravel the teachings of Yin Yoga. Hosted by SoHo Yoga and facilitated by Lee-Anne Heron and Nic Matthews. It was a suburban retreat, away from our usual routines and responsibilities, a respite from the constant noise of the pandemic. A time to focus solely on our bodies and minds, a chance to discover the construction of fascia.

Each day we practiced Yin, gained knowledge, shared information, listened to each others stories without judgement, bonding through movement. Reading The Joy of Movement by Kelly McGonigal explains why we were able to feel so connected in such a short period of time,

“It’s not the idea of being connected, it is a physical sensation of connection… synchronised movement works to create the sensation of group unity. As you move, your brain receives feedback from your muscles, joints, and inner ear about what your body is doing. Simultaneously, you see others performing the same movements. When these inputs arrive at once, your brain merges them into one unified perception. The movements you see in others become linked to the movements you feel, and your brain interprets the other bodies as an extension of your own. The more fully the brain integrates these perceptual streams, the more connected you feel to those you are moving with”.

Even though some came to class with migraines and significant worries we were quietly elated that we could assemble together to hold space for each other, a safe place to re-gather both physical and inner strength. A collective joy was felt:

“The feeling of boundaries dissolving is one of the most powerful aspects of collective joy.” Kelly McGonigal

Spending time practising Yin with this receptive community of women supports my values of cultivating calm, creating connections and as Helen commented learning how “to sit with discomfort”. We talked about women’s circles and the longing we had felt when reading Anita Diamant’s book, The Red Tent to have our own red tent to retreat to for restoration and the solace of women’s company.

“In the red tent, the truth is known. In the red tent, where days pass like a gentle stream, as the gift of Innana courses through us, cleansing the body of last month’s death, preparing the body to receive the new month’s life, women give thanks — for repose and restoration, for the knowledge that life comes from between our legs, and that life costs blood.” Anita Diamant, The Red Tent

I’m dreaming up wellbeing ideas for when we can freely gather together again. If you’re interested please email me using the button below so I can let you know my plans.

Retreat

To withdraw to a quiet or secluded place is a regular necessity for my peace of mind. It could be early mornings watching the sunrise from my meditation nest on the verandah or rapt in a book in bed. Earlier this year it was at the Bethel Retreat on Kirra Beach. They “specialise in Healing Life’s Hurts, a residential, week long experience which encourages our guests to journey into healing the effects of much of life’s hurts.”

The Bethel Retreat gave me useful tools to process my emotions in a healthy way. It was a relief to realise how many past hurts I had suppressed. Most of my hurts were a mixture of sadness and anger that have been pushed down or swallowed. The other focus of the retreat is to encourage you to live from your heart, rather than be lead by your head. The head is the voice that speaks to you critically whereas the heart voice is filled with love and compassion. This habit I have been cultivating through meditation, mindfulness and loving awareness practices for many years. I don’t speak to myself harshly, but I have been struggling with letting go of expectations, especially those of my nuclear family. I expect them to appreciate my efforts and show their gratitude with loving gestures. At the retreat we learned the practice of writing dialogue to the love within ourselves to let go of expectations. In this way, over time, I can simply count on myself to give all the love and affirmation I need. In this way I can tap into my inner wisdom.

Each day we started and finished with meditation, we were encouraged to be silent - no music, no books, no screen-time, no distractions from the work of healing. I loved the silence, it was so liberating to not have to speak to anyone or share my story or listen to other guest’s stories. We were scheduled a 40 minute session with a companion who listens or bears witness to the release of our hurts, our emotions, our discoveries about learned behaviours, coping mechanisms and limiting beliefs. The companion is someone who has done the retreat and can listen with an open heart, whilst gently guiding and encouraging your to focus on the processes being shared.

Each morning we were led through the focus of the day which involved writing tasks, so that you practice making this process a habit. The silence helps you listen to your heart so you can know how to proceed and what to write. The hope is that your inquiry will lead you to choose to live with LOVE rather than fear. As you do the writing you feel all kinds of emotions release (cue box of tissues), so it’s powerful to notice that as you read out what you have written even stronger feelings can arise. My companion explained that this is because speaking out loud validates our feelings, we feel heard. Then we can lovingly let those strong emotions go. We can tend to ourselves with loving kindness. If you struggle with this imagine that it is a dear friend or family member coming to you with these woes then use the way you would speak to them as a guide for speaking to yourself.

My companion skillfully used imagery when my emotions, especially fear, tried to silence me. Fear manifests in my throat so I literally cannot speak, but she showed me how to tap into my heart energy or LOVE to find the courage to speak. It’s amazing, astonishing and wonderful to have these processes to use. One of my favourite pieces of new information from the retreat is that EMOTION is energy in motion and I can choose the direction and processing of this energy - that’s empowering!

Kirra Beach is an ideal setting as I could walk off my excess emotional energy, easily finding a patch of beach for myself. The Bethel Retreat was restful, releasing and practical - I have continued to use the tools I learnt and (mostly) feel a quiet sense of satisfaction with my lot.