Cause to
ln the years 1974-1976 , the Kelly family lived in a small NSW / QId border town called Goodooga , where John was Principal of a central school with an over 95 % indigenous enrolment . Susan was six and a half years old when they left . When she was 18 in Yr12 she wrote this piece for the 1988 Bicentenary . It was actually then published in St . Margaret ' s News .
When we recently found it in a drawer we asked Sue to comment now on Her recollections , especially in view of recent Aboriginal concerns re the Constitution .
CAUSE TO CELEBRATE ( The original piece )
- Pam and John Kelly
There was a time when I considered it a disadvantage to be white . Most of my friends were black and this seemed to allow them to have the time of their lives . They were carefree ; they didn ’ t have to wear shoes to school ; they got to camp out by the river every night . Of course , I was very young – and living in a town where whites were the minority , but I clearly remember how much those kids were loved and cared for . The entire aboriginal community was as one large sprawling family .
At six , I thought the world lay at their toasted brown feet . In a fleck on the map where television was rare , and consisted of a crackling and snowy A . B . C ., we made our own entertainment . Apart from playing house under the water tanks , the river was a great place to swim and fish under parental supervision . I remember by my friends ’ earthiness . Their coloured skin could easily have been a permanent layer of dust ; they seemed an intrinsic part of the land . Though I never thought of them as being dirty .
Many aboriginals lived in town , and there was another , more ‘ civilised ’ reserve apart from the group of corrugated iron shelters by the river . But it was the ‘ river people ‘ who captivated my attention . That river was the vein of the town , and they knew how to sap its strength ; but it wasn ’ t something physical .
I ’ ve been told about the drunks who were gaoled just about every night of the week ( and their white counterparts who were left to roam the streets ). That isn ’ t what I remember . I ’ ve also heard that children ’ s impressions are invaluable .
They were a mystical lot to me , and I ’ m so sad at the poison that has been injected into their culture . I won ’ t say ‘ simple ’ culture because I believe it has underestimated complexities which appeal to fresh , open minds . There is some naked romance about taking from the land without exhausting it . The act of snake or grub eating will never repulse me .
St Margaret ’ s News 6 June 2017