The birth of ‘Ben’

Every day for 4 years, I rode the tram featured in ‘Ben’. David and I were living in St. Kilda, Melbourne, and I commuted the 15 minutes to work in the city centre and back on the 96 tram. Sadly, the aggressive female passenger with the personality disorder in the story actually exists, although her name is not Rhonda. During my 4 years of riding the tram I witnessed her attack innocent bystanders, violently and causing great harm, on at least 6 occasions.

‘Rhonda’ needs extensive treatment as an in-patient at a psychiatric facility, however the Victorian Mental Health Act can’t cope with everyone: some people slip through the cracks. She may be a monster, but she doesn’t mean to be. I’m certain that with extensive psychotherapy and the right combination of medications, ‘Rhonda’ could be a good person, and a good friend to someone.

When disturbances such as these attacks happen on a tram, most people choose to ignore it and just stare out of their window. It made me wonder what they were seeing out there that nobody else saw: the action was happening inside the tram! With that in mind, I created ‘Ben’… Monstrosity is just a matter of perspective. Friendly monster, or monstrous friend? You decide!

‘Ben’ is available exclusively on all Amazon Kindle stores.