Contemplating Networks
resilience and ordinary magic
Hi Friends,
I've been wondering about connections and resilience lately. The recent installation of our community mushroom network sculpture brought these thoughts to the surface, prompting reflections on vulnerability, strength, and interdependence.
A poem of sorts came through:
Magnificence
There is enough here to digest; you can slow down.
Breathe, feel it.
Though things feel urgent, there is no rush— the shifts are already happening.
Pay attention; there's no need to push past this moment.
Embody what is here.
It will be okay—it will not be taken; it will be transformed.
We have been hiding in plain sight, hiding our magnificence from ourselves, from each other.
But here.we.are.
Let it truly sink in: our aliveness is part of the great miracle.
We need not look further, even though we do.
The initiation of isolation, of separateness, difference, of not fitting in, allowed us to grow uniquely into who we truly are.
And now is the time—we are ready to fruit, to intersect, emerge, interconnect, become a network of networks.
Finding each other in the dark, we share nutrients, ideas, information, enriching and diversifying the forest, the ecosystem.
Here, in our difference—utterly unique, diverse—only our spores can spread our imprint.
Here, in our difference, we intersect, receiving each other, allowing each other to regenerate, reform, spawn— to transform.
We’ve been dreaming this new world for a long time. Now it’s time to build it.
Let’s go!
How do we build on what we’ve got so far? Surely not everything needs to be torn down? Surely there’s plenty here that can be adopted, repurposed, or transplanted. Certainly, the resilience of the human being and species itself could be drawn on for inspiration.
In the days after Jen and I finished installing the mushroom network sculpture, I was nervous. There were high winds that shook the neighbour’s scaffold at night.
“They’ll be okay,” Jen reassured me, highlighting the strength of the interconnected threads between each mushroom. The more connections, the more resilient. And Jen was right. The network held the individual mushrooms in place, while reinforcing the network itself.
But is this true of us? Or is there something to be said for the quality, the nature of the connections we form? Surely more isn't always better. Too many connections pulling in multiple directions might spread us too thin.
I've been feeling a bit stretched recently, exploring new digital networks like Jumpsuiters, PsyGaia, the Centre for Liberating Practices, and now Farcaster.
Yet, while new aligned connections feel important, strengthening and reigniting existing relationships feels vital. Friends I caught up with recently amazed me with their transformative work. One friend has seeded resilient community models by creating trans peer-support groups in Sydney—training others and empowering them to lead their own groups. It’s a perfect example of self-seeding, regenerative, decentralised action.
When asked if it was draining or life-giving, they shared that vulnerability within the group made it regenerative—support became reciprocal.
For me, hosting events like Pride Poetry is similarly demanding yet deeply fulfilling—creating spaces not just for others but for myself. It underscores a critical insight: we must intentionally create the environments we wish to see flourish. And also, we need reciprocity in community for it to feel good.
Ordinary Magic
In her book Ordinary Magic: Resilience in Development, Ann Masten defines resilience as "the capacity of a dynamic system to adapt successfully to disturbances that threaten system function, viability, or development.” Resilience she argues isn't extraordinary; it's natural and common, shaped by relationships, self-regulation, problem-solving skills, motivation, and community supports.
Collaborating with my garden GPT to find nature metaphors for these themes reinforced this idea—there's so much existing magic around us, ready to be adopted, repurposed, or transplanted.
While it’s exciting to seek and find new connections, there’s just as much value in strengthening the connections we already have, tending to what is already here. A note to self when I want to find the next shiny thing: slow down and return to what can be felt in this moment.
Haha, but also the internet can do this—reimagining ourselves as Studio Ghibli characters has sparked a lot of joy for me today, as has connecting with new folks on Warpcast—a kind of “Twitter” that feels much friendlier and funner - which I guess is ordinary magic too, just realised in the tech fields which can make it feel kind of elevated.
(Side note: Warpcast, a Web 3.0 decentralised platform built on Farcaster, is fascinating—it empowers users through decentralisation, tokenised content, and genuine ownership. I'll delve deeper into this soon).
PBEAT is now open
The Space Whale community mushroom network sculpture is up as part of the Pearl Beach Ephemeral Art Trail 2025—see it and 35 other nature-based installations at the Pearl Beach Arboretum, open until April 27.
Our next Pride Poetry event is coming up next week—April 2—hope to see you there!
I am also wanting to experiment with doing a live recording of the event for those who can’t make it and sharing it here. We’ll see how that goes..
Thanks for reading and being here,
Speak soon,
Lit