on September 28, 2019
Ben Ts literary triumph
Whilst in Brisbane I happened to buy a BIG ISSUE from a vendor selling on the corner of George and Tank Street .I enjoy the magazine and its grounded real content from poeple who have had their share of lifes challenges.There are usually lots of well written articles The annual literary issue is particularly worth reading with some amazing stories .There are usually thoughtful words of wisdom wrought from people who have done it tough but can still look on the bright side and share the positives and the upside of their humble circumstances There are sometimes good interviews with celebs and The magazine is refereshing with its real grounded everyday news and poeples real life stories refreshingly devoid of airbrushed photos and consumer hype and ads
This day the vendor smiled with a sparkle in his eye as he handed me the mag and told me to make sure I read the article on page 7 about my brush with a superstar remarking that his encounter had been with someone up there in the galaxy of superstars alongside Beyonce he himself had met and revealing that he himself was the author of the said article
Intrigued a bit later I turned to page 7 to read ‘ My Brush With A Superstar ‘ It was only a short article but I found it witty and funny and extremely well written I couldnt quite tell if it was tongue in cheek or if the writer was serious in his adulation of his super hero who turned out to be none other Melbourne based Aussie Comedian Dave Hughes
Quote “He slowly raised his hand in true A lister style a style that said “Hi you have been ackbnowledged by a Superstar and at the same time also stop right there dont come any closer I am a superstar . and then he was gone It was truely an incredible moment and one I will cherish for the rest of my life .
Being a writer myself I instantly saw that they guy had a talent for writing and was impressed with his style and I also reckoned Hughsey would love reading the article so and I felt I’d go ahead and pass it on to Dave Hughes’ manager to pass on to Dave
Gratifyingly Dave Hughes manager got back to me straight away and thanked me for bringing the article to their attention and assured me she would make sure Dave was across it.
I myself seized an opportunity just before I left Brissy to go back and offer Ben some encouragement and we had a good chat He turned out to be a very intelligent guy who even got into Uni to study science but fell into difficult emotional times and wasnt able to continue.
I really fervantly wish Hughesy might reach out to Ben who is homeless and moves between sleeping in backpackers and sleeping on the streets
I guess the whole experience for me impressed upon me the juxtapositioning of two extremes of individuals embodying their life journeys at opposite ends of the wealth and social status spectrum coexisting side by side in modern times in our country and living out such very different karmas
A celebrated much loved Aussie comedien who is worth millions and a talented writer who is homeless and yet able to write and pay homage to his hero hailing him as a great man and a shining star without a hint of jealousy or rancour …
This is indeed a world of extreme paradoxes and I am again challenged to try to understand why some people have so much and others so little when surely we are all valued and special and important in the eyes of our Creator .
I am enclosing a copy of Ben Ts article which might not be legible so better still do yourself a favour go and support your local Big Issue vendor in which ever town you happen to be and buy a copy of the latest September /October and turn to page 7
