Page 38 - 10th Annual International Charles Town Maroon Conference and Festival Magazine

June 2018 Charles Town Maroon International Conference Magazine

the clouds float by and the birds circle over me. I everything on your land that you need. You don’t think
walked in the river looking for beautiful stones, and of material things; you just think of your physical,
picked up petrified wood, and covered myself in the emotional, and spiritual well-being. It’s really healing
earth, the red ochre. All these things I did on my own, walking on your Country. I know that my people who
just to get away from the people. have gone before me have walked this land too.
Growing up as a mission kid I never felt that I
What has surprised you about your Connection to belonged. But walking on Country is an awesome
Country? feeling because you know that it lives within you and
Last year, on our trip to Nhanda-Yamatji Country at no one can take it from you. They can’t remove our
Shark Bay, WA, I was surprised how I knew more than spirituality or our connection to the seas and rivers that
our white tour guide. It was like I had walked that will stand strong always.
country before, yet I had never put a footprint there. It
was like I was walking with my ancestors — they were How do you believe Australia should manage
showing me everything. That tour guide reckoned he Country?
was walking with Mother Nature that day! When I look at all these ranger programs that employ
a lot of our people, it amazes me that just because these
When you Connect to Country, how do you feel? white fellas have got a piece of paper, they feel they
It’s a feeling of “this is where I belong”. I’m connected know more than us. Our people have walked this land
to this country by birth right, by blood, DNA, the for thousands of years — we know this land. We know
Milky Way, and through the Songlines and the when we have to burn back this land, so that next time
Dreaming*: through dance, stories, art and language. the seasons come around there will be food there.
Mother Earth and Father Sky are the sources of all of White Australia could learn a lot from our ancient
our knowledge and culture. wisdom and knowledge that’s been passed down
through the generations. Many times, though, this gets
What do you wish others knew about Aboriginal overlooked. I think Australia should re-think how they
people’s Connection to Country? manage the land and come and talk to us and learn
Normally, white Australia says, “Oh, but they didn’t from our people and their knowledge and wisdom that
do anything with the land. They didn’t farm it; they they carry about Country.
didn’t keep animals.” But we didn’t need to do that
because we lived in harmony with the land and with What do you think about mining in Australia?
the seasons. We knew when the mullet was running With all this mining, they are scarring Mother Earth.
because the wildflowers were in bloom. We could read My heart feels sad because I look at the traditional
the stars for when the emu eggs were ready to gather. people speaking up for Country, but no one’s hearing
Our Mother Earth gave us signs and told us when to them. All they hear is money. Money’s got a louder
burn off country. We didn’t need to create roads. She’s voice than our mob. As an Indigenous person, we must
our provider. She owns us. We don’t own her. Non- never be silent. We must speak up against any
Indigenous people think they are above the land. injustices against Mother Earth and how they are
Aboriginal people know that we come from the land slowly killing her. They are digging into her flesh,
and that we go back to the land. We are part of the land poisoning and killing the waters and all living life that
and the land is part of us. lives there. She is crying acid tears. That’s why we
must find our strength and speak our truth with a
What are your strongest beliefs about Connection to strong spirit, even if white people won’t listen. We
Country? must never give up, even if we feel we are not heard.
It’s not only physical, it’s spiritual. I find when I’m
walking on my Country, I’m contented. You have

37