a typical Asian mother, saying, “You need to study, you need to
do well, we’ve sacrificed so much, blah blah blah.” If I hadn’t
had her, things could have been very different. After a couple
of years, I went to Korea to teach English to kids. It was great- I think being away from everything was good for my mental
health, and that was when I thought, “Let’s do something.”
Eventually, I got into legal practice at TAFE, and straightaway
loved it and did well. One thing that appealed to me was that
knowledge of the law is empowering. Early on, I decided
to be a lawyer and applied to law schools, but kept getting
rejected because of my high school score. I’m forever grateful
to Victoria University for giving me a second chance.
I knew I wanted to work with kids – even when I was studying, I worked
in residential care homes for the most traumatised kids in Victoria.
I understood quite intimately what trauma was and looked like, and
what abuse was and looked like. So, I felt pretty aware of what they
were going through. I’d tell some kids about my situation, and the
shock on their faces is something that sticks with me. I’d say I don’t
see my dad, either – at that stage I didn’t know he was in jail.
When I had the interview for my present job, I managed to bring up
that I ride a big, loud, fast motorbike and do boxing, which was my
ace of spades – they instantly build rapport with kids. I started boxing
in about 2006, and it’s really helped me calm myself. There’s a lot of
discipline, and it made me look at violence through a different lens.
Specifically, controlled violence with someone who’s agreeing to it.
Based on the legal stuff I’m involved with now, family violence
is clearly an issue at all schools. Kids want to take an order out
against Mum or Dad – generally Dad – so I attend court for them; help
them; engage them with counselling and other support services.
Crime is not a huge issue; most of our kids are pretty good, they
don’t get into really bad stuff. A lot of kids are working, which is
fantastic, but what’s not fantastic is that they’re being exploited –
employment law is a big area of interest. And fines. They forget to
touch on to public transport – forget their cards, as kids do – so
they get myki fines. I deal with that quite a lot. Then you get really
random consumer things, like dodgy stuff going on with telcos.I also do a bit of mentoring. If I’ve got a client I think I can help in
some extra way, I take a holistic approach to the service and engage
them with the other wellbeing stuff we have at school. On top of
that, I teach kids about the law and their rights and responsibilities.
I might also respond to a situation: for instance, if there’s a fight or
some bullying, I can go into the classes and say this is what bullying
is; these are the laws; these are your rights and responsibilities;
and these are the implications of what can happen if you’re involved
in these behaviours. The school sees great benefit in that.I wish there’d been a me when I was at school. I think life would have
been different if I’d known my rights. Even if I didn’t want to uphold
or enforce them, at least I’d be empowered with the knowledge that
family violence is not OK. In my dark days, I was all, “Why me, it’s not
fair,” but I look at my life now and I’m happy; I’m helping people; I see
change in kids; and I’m making a difference. Although it was horrible,
I don’t know if I’d change anything, because it’s formed me into the
person I am and shaped my worldview in a positive way. Because I’ve
gone through crap, I can deal with anything that comes my way.Photo
Phoebe Powell
pieces of me