Down The Track
Warlpiri woman,
now weeping and keening,
beating her head
with the rocks in her hand.
Warlpiri woman,
your baby is dead now,
died of necessity
in this harsh dry land.
Two were born yesterday,
brown little bodies.
You knew what would happen,
two can't survive.
When you move from this camp
there's too much to carry.
You'd better be grateful
he left one alive.
A man's gotta worry
and watch after woman,
much hunting and fishing
and no time to help.
So he took your new baby
and bashed its wee brains out,
such as you'd do
to the runt of a whelp.
So gather your digging sticks,
Warlpiri woman,
pick up your pichi,
your baby and go.
hunting is finished now
here by this waterhole
and even with one baby,
moving is slow.
.~.~.~.
Warlpiri woman,
a century later,
Home is the half
of a rainwater tank.
No longer nomads,
but no gubba's mansion,
tied up in mortgages,
owned by the bank.
Sorrow's your destiny,
Warlpiri woman,
your man has let gubba ways
addle his brain.
Sniffing at petrol
and pickled in alcohol,
small wonder they say
his behaviour's insane.
So gather your babies up,
go see the white women.
Ask them
to grow your brown babies up strong.
He's made up his mind
to kill one of your babies
because he considers
your culture's gone wrong.
What do you think of it,
Warlpiri woman?
Diseased and alone
in this hard dry brown place.
Polluted by gubbas,
degraded, dejected.
no hope in this land
for your down-trodden race.
No hope in this land
for your down-trodden race.
Glossary:
Warlpiri: Aboriginal nation
from Central Australia
pichi: wooden carrying dish
gubba: non-Aboriginal person,
white fella
Note: please do not judge my people
unkindly for traditional practices that
were based on survival strategies in
a harsh land. These practices were
carried out by Indigenous Peoples
world-wide.
This was written
for my sister Trish
who inspires and encourages
with love and blessings...
Music has been composed
by my Daughter-in Law,
Lindy Connett,
which is accompanied,
in traditional manner,
by didgeridoo and tapping sticks.
I am unable to provide the music
at this time.
By cherryk
© 2008 cherryk
(All rights reserved)
| |
