Max's Island

Gaj was into hip hop and rap when growing up in Sri Lanka. At 16 years of age, and heavily influenced by the New York hip hop and rap scene, Gaj and his brother set up their “Urban Sounds” outfit to entertain crowds at clubs and live events… and then through studio recorded releases. As typical teenagers, they were actually really anxious about performing live and were more comfortable in the studio. This changed once they began to get a following. After coming to Australia and with the birth initially of his daughter and then his son, the desire to keep creating music in this genre was still strong but he realised a need to create “kid friendly’ content. From this thought, The Cuddly Koalas was born and the creation of hip hop/rap music with clean lyrics that have important social and personal messages …specifically for children. Using lyrics created by his acclaimed song writing wife, Anjana, and supporting vocals from their children, The Cuddly Koalas sound is catchy and highly relatable to their audience. They have had great impact since releasing their initial album “Happy Families”. With world-wide involvement of children to make this music … this translated to international appeal once it was released. Consequently, they were discovered by an international network and this opened more doors to the world wide scene and a new growing audience.

Michael Ward faced a definitive moment during a dark time in his life. He admitted that he couldn’t see a way out. He was just ‘stuck’ ... he couldn’t find happiness or any purpose to his life. But a revelation that he should ‘try a little harder’ and make real change was the catalyst to ‘writing a list’ of what was needed to recover. He became diligent in adopting new disciplines of looking after himself … sleep, food, water, exercise and being with the right people were the primary drivers to achieving a different life…PLUS there was a desire to be creative.   He had to believe in himself … a version of the classic Max’s Island value of ‘Believe in Everyone’. Music had always been a creative part of his life and now learning to sing became a dedicated focus … it was an obsession … a way for him to fully express himself. This creative expression became part of every aspect of his life … not just his music.

Since the introduction of legislation into the WA parliament, in 2021, the practice of Voluntary Assisted Dying (Commonly referred to as VAD) … has been accessed by many West Australians. The opportunity for patient autonomy and compassion in end-of-life care … and the relief from intolerable suffering, has seen a year-on-year increase in the number of people making a first request for VAD and the number of VAD deaths recorded. Michael McBride’s father was described as a ‘larger than life’ character who had given a career to the protection of others. Once his cancer prognosis was clearly defined and the medical options for recovery lessened, he chose to explore the option of VAD. He entered the very detailed and strictly managed process defined by the legislation. Having to meet specific standards and general requirements was important, but the real benefits came as during the process he became more in control of his destiny. Working with close family, his GP and other trained professionals, a plan was developed and ultimately, he was able to end his life under his own conditions, with family alongside him. The dignity and personal agency witnessed by Michael and his siblings was highly visible and helped them manage the emotions created by their fathers’ decision.

As a teenager, Monique Power was exposed to the death of a friend’s father and this became an early catalyst for her to realise “Life is Short”. She felt there was a need to do things. In her early 20’s, this took her to Ghana, Africa on volunteer work … Quickly, she realised her passion was not necessarily being on the ground, so to speak, but it was in influencing policy to make change … and using her ability and privilege to leverage. She also discovered that “Passion is well received” by others and used this thought for motivation to pursue a higher education in Political Science and International relations on her return to Australia. But just as the degree was being completed, her life changed with the conception of her first child. She was diagnosed prenatally with a very rare disability. The pregnancy was highly challenging and the medical professionals painted a dire picture for her chances of survival at birth. But Monique relied on her ‘passion’ and used this to influence her intuitive beliefs and decision making to guide her, not only during the pregnancy, but also following her daughter’s birth.

n this final instalment of Deany Jaghdour’s visit to Max’s Island, we begin to learn a little more of her personal discovery of how she thinks and acts in stressful situations. The importance of professional mental health support is highlighted and Deany really learnt more about herself by reflecting on her early childhood memories. But, whilst she was managing her own mental health recovery pathway, the family life was not settled by any means. And in fact, it became more chaotic as they traversed the globe during a short period of time … This included living in Bali on 3 separate times, living in France on two other occasions and in between, staying in Melbourne and actually buying a ‘family” home in Perth.  The reasons for these changes were mixed … and included multiple redundancies, taking work out of necessity and also by just “following their whim” that seemed to be the right thing at the time. And whilst all of this was happening, Deany gave birth to a second child … and embraced a real passion piece … where she self published a book for children,  explaining the menstrual cycle in mothers.