Craft for a Dry Lake by Kim Mahood

Part of my summer reading is an autobiography that weaves the theme of attachment to land by settler and Aborigine alike. The death of the author’s father prompts a personal pilgrimage to the remote station lands of her childhood. Her connection to the land is marked by ambiguity – it is a wrestling with identityContinue reading “Craft for a Dry Lake by Kim Mahood”

Sorry Day Eve

Tomorrow is a historic day for Australia. At long last, after much political soul searching and hand wringing, Federal Parliament, through its new Prime Minister, will say the word “sorry” to this land’s first peoples. In this context “sorry” is a power word. It has strong potential for unblocking the process for healing and self-realisation,Continue reading “Sorry Day Eve”

State of emergency ?!?

At long last, there is some acknowledgment from our elected leaders that remote aboriginal communities are in urgent need of support and help. National debate rages over the form this is taking. At its worst it looks like a sledgehammer approach to communities that are already fragile and vulnerable. At its best it enacts aContinue reading “State of emergency ?!?”