Different Perspectives: A Garden Full Of Ideas

Storytelling is never one-dimensional. Every tale carries not just a sequence of events but the lens through which it is told; a voice coloured by memory, emotion, and experience. When multiple perspectives are brought together, the result is not a single thread but a woven fabric: richer, more textured, more human.

To share stories from different viewpoints is to acknowledge that truth itself is multifaceted.

What one person sees as fortune, another may read as folly; what seems imperfect in one light may reveal its quiet beauty in another. By stepping into these varied perspectives, we allow ourselves to see the familiar with fresh eyes — and to recognise that no story is ever whole until it has been viewed from many angles.

This collection invites you to wander through such perspectives, as humorous, poignant, traditional, and philosophical. Each opens a window onto a different way of seeing, and together forming a garden mosaic of ideas, of what it means to live, observe, and remember.

We begin.

Storyteller Carol shared her summer of survival — water tanks dry, kangaroos as neighbours, even a cheeky rat who overstayed its welcome. Compassion met reality with a box of Ratsak.

Storyteller Graham spun pottery into philosophy, showing us that perfection is overrated. His tale of cracked pots and wabi-sabi wisdom proved life’s beauty lies in imperfection.

Storyteller Ann took us back to northern England, to a 13th-century church and a mysterious sack at the top of Hedleys Hill. Folklore and fortune wrapped in a traditional tale.

Storyteller Olga uncovered truth-telling history, from archaeologist Rhys Jones’ groundbreaking Tasmanian discoveries to the Franklin Dam campaign. Echoes of heritage, justice, and a line, “if the caves are destroyed, we are destroyed.”

Storyteller Jill shared the perils of travelling with a die-hard AFL Crows fan. Herb’s beloved hat became both mascot and menace — a poetic (and hilarious) reminder that footy loyalties travel with you, whether you like it or not.

Storyteller Vivienne transported us to a village in India, where an elephant taught us the paradox of perspective: everyone’s wrong, and everyone’s right, right?

Storytellers Gail and Munetaka shared a new Kamishibai (Japanese paper theatre) tale through the eyes of Georges Ferdinand Bigot, the French satirist who captured Meiji Japan in ink and wit. His cartoons survived, but his return to Paris where the “great iron tower” rose, left us with a legacy of seeing culture with both humour and critique.

Storyteller Mildred turned the courtroom into a fairytale stage — Goldilocks on trial in a judicial inquiry. Hilarious, sharp, and all about whose truth counts.

Storyteller Sue Khoo brought us around the table with 12 women, countless stories, and a tradition of writing messages in a shared card. From holidays to life lessons — and the occasional social faux pas (like mixing up sympathy with birthday wishes) — it was friendship told in ink.

Hostess Sue tied the trails together, reminding us that life is a patchwork of perspectives. With a knack for thinking laterally (and a lifetime of wriggling out of trouble), she showed how the obvious isn’t always so obvious — whether in gardens, stories, or the way we see the world.

Together, stories remind us that life is not defined by a single narrative, but by the interplay of many: overlapping, contrasting, and complementing each other.

The end.