Paper Fox Radio

Mahboba Rawi was Born in Afghanistan and forced to flee as a teenager due to her activism against the Soviet occupation.

She then lived in a refugee camp in Pakistan for two years before marrying and moving to Australia.

After her son’s death in 1992, she decided to take action to protect and advocate for children in Afghanistan.

And founded Mahboba’s Promise. An Australian non-profit organisation dedicated to helping disadvantaged women and children in Afghanistan. A country that has been torn apart by years of war and civil unrest and who now live under Taliban rule.

Mahboba’s Promise has established schools, shelters and health clinics across Afghanistan and provided numerous sponsorships to widows, orphans and girls in need.

She has helped thousands and thousands of people and to many of them she is ‘Mother Mahboba’ …

Mahboba has been awarded an Order of Australia and in 2012 was Australian Muslim Woman of the Year.

Her story is worthy of making a film… or three.

Mahboba is an angel… up there with Mother Teresa for the work she does, it’s simply incredible... In the world she operates, and the comparatively small size of her organisation it’s difficult to comprehend the impact she has had on the many many lives in Afghanistan and around the world.

Please enjoy my conversation with Mahboba Rawi

Az 🙏🏽✌️

A fair bit of energy goes into finding guests for the podcast.

Do they fit the theme? Do they have a story to share? Is there and interesting angle to tackle? Do I have the courage to ask them? Are they willing and available?

And once every so often, Universe delivers people into my life that I’m magnetically drawn to talk to.

Even if I’m not clear why or how. Something just intuitively feels right and I go with my gut.

My conversation with Renate Rienmuller fits into the 'intuitively guided' bucket.

Renate is a photomedia artist based in Sydney who works primarily in traditional printing processes, including one of the most time consuming and technically savage photographic processes - 19th century ‘wet plate’.

She is a co-founder of the non-for-profit creative space ‘La Creme Creative’ and also a co-founder of B.A.D. The Brookvale Arts District. A thriving community, connecting local and international artists, artisans, creatives and heart-lead creators of all walks of life.

Renate is currently working on her next solo exhibition. It's a portrait series due for launch in mid September 2022 and a book!

In the conversation we discuss Renate’s photography, creative process and also turn our attention to: what make an artist? or said another way - who makes art?

Where do you draw the line between taking photos, hanging your work in a gallery (art) vs fixing bicycles or punching numbers as an accountant?

It’s about the labels we attach to define people - as artists, or not. What’s the connective thread that binds (creative) spirits together and what is it that makes them so magnetic?

Easily one of my favourite conversations to date and I hope you enjoy it too. 

Thank you Universe for delivering this opportunity to me and thank you Renate for bringing your magnetic energy, creative connection and sharing your story.

Az ✌️

Early mornings are part of Jaimee Roger’s life. 

As a young athlete Jaimee was a national level swimmer and trialed for the Olympics. Keeping company with some of Australia’s greatest swimmers. 

Swimming at this level means years of hard work and sacrifice. Early starts at the pool. Repeatedly pushing your mind and body to its limits. 

Often the difference between winning gold and obscurity can be determined by the millisecond. It was injury that forced Jaimee away from competitive swimming and she’s lived with the weight of 'never quite making it as an Olympic athlete'. 

These days Jaimee co-host's a breakfast radio show on the Big Sports Breakfast, in Sydney. 

More early starts. 

When she leaves for work, both of her young children are usually already awake. To make this delicate balance possible, the well-known media professional and busy mother of two means every single minute of her day is accounted for. 

After nearly 20 years away from competition Jaimee is ready for a new challenge. She is training for an 35km open water swim across The English Channel for her first time. 

In this episode I talk with Jaimee about swimming and the role it plays in her life. The beauty and challenges of open water swimming. The importance of community. As she prepares for this epic adventure of a lifetime. 

Please enjoy,

Jaimee Rogers Intro (03:01)

Becoming the TAB Lady (04:05) 

Managing two roles and study (11:00)

Competitive swimming & injury (17:35)

Breaststrokers are their own kind (23:43)

Why the English Channel? (24:45)

The distortion of being surrounded by uncommon people (30:01)

Details and logistics of The English Channel swim (33:08)

Being out of my depth with open water swimming (35:16)

Time away from swimming (38:06)

Training, preparation and nutrition... (39:40)

What's it like being out there in the vast open-ness? (47:40)

The open water bug (51:45)

Mental health and suicide awareness (54:58)

How do you take care of yourself? (58:38)

A process of learning (01:03:45)

What does success look like? (01:09:29)

A detailed experience of my first 10 day Vipassana Meditation Retreat. 

Intro

Day by Day 

Insights

Closing

“We all need a bit more Vajin in our lives.”

You probably / might describe Vajin Armstrong as an elite ultra-marathon runner. A favourite son of the New Zealand and Australian running community.

And a practicing monk.

When I asked Vajin to describe himself, the answer quickly became a kaleidoscope of colour and perspectives on reality and consciousness.

It’s at this point the best approach is to grab some popcorn. Sit-back. And enjoy the show.

Through our conversation we traverse the metaphysical and philosophical, more-so than the epic running achievements and associated identity. Things like; His spiritual journey. Being grounded in a world of chaos. Reincarnation. Meditation. Embracing the suck. Ancient fables and his perspectives on ‘The Meat Suit’.

A couple of ideas that stuck-out at were:

(To paraphrase) “We’re all blindly feeling our way around the universe. Trying to describe it to each other”.

It’s the idea that we all could be right. Working with the information we have in-front of us. It depends on where you view the world from and being curious enough to ask others what and how they see. And being willing to listen.

To consciously grow.

Speaking to challenges of the past. The pages and chapters of your life that are already written can’t be changed. They’re part of you now. The only thing you can do is to learn from and embrace them as part of what makes you uniquely you.

Your special sauce.

A huge, huge thank you to Vajin for his generosity. For sharing his wisdom and perspectives. All with infectious enthusiasm, full of peace and light. 

To listen to the full episode, click the link in bio or visit paperfoxradio.com/podcast

Az 🙏🏃🏻

(Please excuse the sound quality on this one. Driver error 😬)

The background noise of life today is a constant siren of uncertainty for the future. It’s easy to feel out of control and lose sight of what matters.

When the opportunity to interview Kirli Saunders arrived, I felt a pull to also talk about the future of our planet.

Kirli is a proud Gunai woman. Her writing has received numerous awards and critical acclaim. An Artist and consultant on culture and diversity. She is an advocate for the environment, gender and racial equality and LGBTIQA+ rights.

In 2020 Kirli was awarded NSW Aboriginal Woman of the Year.

In our conversation we discuss the environment and listening to each other, our elders and to country. We follow Kirli’s trajectory from a career in teaching that inspired her to write ‘The Incredible Freedom Machines’. To the moment her mentor said “Kirli… you need to start taking this [writing] seriously.” And the pressure that comes with stepping into the unknown, success and responsibility. 

The thing that struck me was that under the barrage of worldly heaviness and uncertainty, Kirli is a figure of calm resilience founded in daily practice.

A voice of hope and possibility for the whole community. Kirli’s message begins with compassion and alignment to values, country and community. It’s in her voice when she talks, her writing, her art. Everything she applies herself to.

Enjoy,

"It's the realisation that there's always more that can be done. There will always be more that can be said. There will always be questions left on the table. There will always be more that you can add. There will always be room for improvement. It can always be better. It’s learning to be ok with things left undone and unsaid. It’s about doing what you can with what you have at the time. it’s accepting things for the way that they are and letting them fly and be in the universe."

---

Hey team, I hope you’re doing really well 🙂

Sticking with the theme of the podcast → “this one’s a little different”.

First: It’s my first shot at a solo episode. That’s an experience allllll in itself!

Second: it essentially documents my personal rollercoaster through the process of redefining the next iteration of this podcast.

What’s cool / interesting is how it started out as very rough sketch: “What if my creative process was the episode?” And transformed. Throwing stuff at the wall and seeing what sticks and building on those ideas. The episode emerged.

The result not only captures how messy my (the) creative process can be. It’s a look behind the curtain at the internal challenges and habits that have derailed me in the past and confronting those head-on.

Building an episode around this journey turned-out to be the perfect vehicle for new ideas and insights. I made a mess, learned a bunch of new things and had so much freaking fun along the way.

As Bob Ross would say ‘a happy accident’.

I hope you get something from it too and would love to hear your thoughts.

Enjoy,

David Wallin AKA ‘Davros’ has been documenting everything since he was a kid. Inspired by the local punk and skate scene in the 90’s – on the outskirts of Sydney.

These days Davros is a commercial filmmaker, documentary photographer, husband and father.

When his own estranged father finally succumbed to a lifetime of alcohol abuse and died alone in his tiny housing commission flat 10 hours away. Davros and his sisters travelled together to clean-up the mess.

Instinctually he took a camera and over the course of a week, he shot 350 photos. Not knowing where they might lead him.

Working with confidants and mentors the photos helped to repair some of the damage as they transformed into an exhibition: ‘I was too late - A portrait of a life’ at the Head On Photo Festival 2021.

The exhibition became a catalyst for a national photography tour and has inspired a documentary series. Exploring the themes of fatherhood and the relationships we have with our fathers.

Our conversation is about creativity and fatherhood. About emergence and trust in the creative process. It’s about the ever evolving role of fatherhood. It’s about creating a safe environment (for everyone) to be seen and heard.

It made me reflect on the relationships I have with my father/s. Where they showed-up. Where I needed them more.

It made me think about the type of father I want to be. Where am I present and where do I disappear?

Where could I do more?

Our children model us. We need to give them a map to follow. To help them feel safe when navigating their own way.

Father, parent or child - this is an important conversation. It may just make you look more deeply at the relationships you’re having. How you’re showing-up, what you give and how they remember you.

Enjoy,

At 93 Edward ‘John’ Swan is behaving like he’s 70.

It’s like he’s blissfully unaware of the 'You’re ageing. Slow-down' memo.

The retired school principle still has a firm handshake, a sparkle in his eye and purpose in his step. Although it’s just one knee gives him a bit of trouble.

And only when walking uphill.

Still fiercely independent and pushes himself too hard from time-to-time. He keeps himself sharp and comes prepared. His mother would be  proud.

A voracious consumer of knowledge. John reads ‘Ulysses’ on a regular basis and stays across all worldly and neighbourhood topics.

Curious about everything and everyone.

This vibrancy for life and unbounded curiosity put him at-odds with his late wife. She would describe it as "John has an extremely high tolerance for boredom."

A comment he accepts with a badge of honour and laughs “She had zero tolerance for boredom, whatsoever!”

My conversation with John is vignette of themes across his 93 years: 'Life-long learning'. Parenthood. His passion for teaching. Major influencers in his life. Regrets. Happiness and what getting older is like.

What’s beautiful is John's recall of early memories like they happened yesterday. Childhood bonds and adventures with friends. His first experiences at a potters wheel. Growing-up with his single mother in a small country town - in a time when being a divorced woman meant you were treated as an outcast.

Experiences that shaped him remain unfaded in his heart and mind all these years later.

For John, the conversation was an introspection. Looking back on the fond and difficult moments of life.

In the hours after recording this episode, John was taken to hospital.

Thankfully it was precautionary. The Doctors said he’d pushed himself too hard and needs to look after himself better: Rest. Hydrate & eat. They kept him in for a couple of nights with ‘other people his age.’

He hated that.

Enjoy,

Control is not an illusion.  

It’s actually a wall I run head-first into on a daily basis. 

Whether that‘s trying to get a strong-willed toddler to do something (anything). Anticipating the way a conversation will go. Believing that all workouts will be amazing. People not doing what they say they’ll do or living up to expectations. Believing I will get a block of uninterrupted space for creative work, or watching precious ideas be picked to death by others. You get the picture. 

Life is one giant reminder that we are far from in control. 

Rich Lees is a mindfulness and meditation teacher, fellow Kiwi and fits neatly into the ‘solid human’ category.

His work is to help others learn to let go of this illusion of control, to be more present. To get more peace and enjoyment in their lives.

When it came time to preparing for this episode, I knew our conversation needed to be different to the obvious series of questions about mindfulness.

But how?

While out for a walk one night I had this wild idea that the best way to do a podcast on mindfulness might be to use this conversation as a 'mindful experimentation'.

To fling open the window and throw-out all of my usual hours of preparation and processes. 

To let go of the illusion of control and trust in the higher powers of our universe. To internationally put myself out of the 'known' and into the creative 'unknown' space. To experience what comes up. To live through practice.

As you’ll hear and as intended, there are moments where I got really stuck and uncomfortable. I didn’t know what I was saying or if it was making any sense. Awash with sensations of being in uncharted territory. Grasping, clutching, trying to control, trying to find my way. 

Very different to anything I've done on the podcast before. 

This episode includes a 10 minute (ish) guided meditation from 5:45 to 17:00 that you can do in your own sweet time. We also cover some common traps and misconceptions around mindfulness and meditation. 

Do you ever get the feeling that the other person isn’t really listening? Or how often are you (trying to) listen to someone, while your mind is racing with thoughts. 👋👋👋 

We do an reflective listening demonstration, based on ancient practices that’s equal parts eye-opening and enjoyable. It‘s perfect for a time when there’s so much noise in our world and no-one is listening. 

The result of this experiment was one of the most freeing and fulfilling experiences in my creative career.

In the days since recording this episode with Rich, my meditation practice became more enjoyable as I watched the drama of my mind unfold - instead of being sucked into it.

And ultimately this conversation changed the way I think about this podcast and what it means to be present.

A big dose of gratitude for Rich for taking on this challenge with me, for leading the meditation and discussion and sharing his experiences with us all.   

And for you, I’d love your feedback on the episode and the experimental format.

Keep your mind open and enjoy. 

Az 🙏

Check out Rich’s work and mindfulness courses at www.mindfulcentre.com.au