It never ceases to amaze me how when there's a group of human beings together, telling stories connects them. I was sitting on the train from Brisbane Central to Palmwoods when a man with a bicycle came over to me. "I just wanted to ask about your shirt," he said. He looked harmless enough. A…
What about the other kids?
When I was in Grade One, my mother came up to the school to talk to the principal. It wasn't anything to do with me or my older brother in Grade Three. We were doing fine. Mum was concerned about the system of grading - the Bell Curve. It meant that only a certain number…
Seeking Hope
The first memory I have of proactively seeking hope was when I was a young girl - possibly 9 years old. I measure the time by my baby brother who is 7 years younger than me. He was a toddler around 2 years old, and just out of nappies. I know that because one of…
New Year’s Eve
It's early morning on New Year's Eve. I'm sitting at my desk that faces the backyard and I'm in awe. Everything is green and fresh after last night's storms. There's a whole ecosystem out there. Birds flitting from trees to plants and the clothesline, their calls echoing through the neighbourhood. My favourite part of this…
What is ‘hopeful words’?
I'm Lisabeth Donohue - writer and teacher of writing. My writing has a common theme - hope. And hope becomes tangible through our words and our actions. Hence, the name 'hopeful words'. 'The Pink Bangle' is a story that rose organically out of those invisible places and moments, and demanded to be told. "Tell them,"…
What are you hopeful about today? 