Cape York Conversations
In the Term 3 holiday break 49 students and eight staff were privileged to attend the 2022 Red Earth Immersion experience to Cape York. Over the next few weeks, students will share their stories and experiences of engaging with Indigenous Australia. Students had the opportunity to know Traditional Owners in their own backyard and hear from them first-hand about their culture, history, challenges and the importance on living on their ancestral land. We hope you enjoy these Cape York conversations and reflections.
After getting back from the Cape York Immersion trip I was able to reflect on my eye-opening experience and time shared with the Traditional Owners on their homelands. Whether it was throwing spears or asking questions around the campfire, I was able to gain so much more knowledge and understanding of the rich Indigenous culture first-hand from the Traditional Owners. A memory and experience that I will forever remember from my immersion is the Kup Murri dinner we were able to have on the last night at the second homeland, Bana. A Kup Murri is a feast, normally made for celebratory events, of meat and vegetable cooked underground under hot coals for several hours during the day. This was one of my favourite activities as we were able to help the Traditional Owners prepare the underground oven and food. Half of us started by collecting sticks and branches to burn down into coals while the other half of us prepared the meat and vegetables to cook. Once we had burned the branches down to coals we put the chicken, pork, beef, and vegetables underground, covered them, and let them cook all day. That night, we uncovered the meat and vegetables, took them out from the ground, and then shared the meal with the Traditional owners sharing more stories in a circle while they shared their traditional food with us. It’s through sharing stories and experiences such as this that we can educate more and more people about their culture to keep the stories and customs of the oldest continuing culture alive.
Charley Masnick (Year 10)
To sum up all that I took away and the connection I felt from the Cape York immersion in a short paragraph is a hard task when I feel it was boundless. I felt the beauty of “connection” to land, the richness of the Kuku Nyankul and Guugu Yimithirr languages and was privileged to hear Indigenous voices on country. We cooked together using an underground oven with river wattle and banana leaf, Aunty Condi sang her mesmerising family song in Kuku Nyankul, we swam in water holes, walked up huge sand dunes, watched the sun rise and slept under the stars. It took us thirty minutes in a bus one day to a water hole which Jonah would walk in bare feet, Little Peter taught us about bush tucker, we ate fresh quandong and picked leaves which were used for soap. Out of the many lessons I learnt, one lesson which stuck with me the most was the importance and value of individual connection to country. Having the privilege of experiencing it in Indigenous communities made me appreciate that in the busy nature of Sydney we seem to forget the significance of land. Maybe we have changed it in so many ways the connection is lost and maybe that is something we can begin to understand and act on. Having had conversations with Auntie Marilyn, she told me that for Indigenous peoples to truly have voice, it should be in their language and on their land, and once we have this, we would be a step further to achieving true reconciliation. Having heard the beauty of the languages (and they are beautiful) made me realise the importance of maintaining them and the deep sadness that is felt by their loss. Memories, stories and culture are passed down through language which is so profound in a culture that does not develop the land in the ways of western cultures. The whole experience made it clear to me that connection to land is a rich complex but maybe a simple web that must be experienced. It was thought-provoking to witness and be a part of these community’s experience of land. I hope that eventually in our school we learn the language of the Gadigal people of the Eora nation on which our school sits. Having seen the culture, art, people, rich landscapes and coastline as not only beautiful but transformative. Through the discussions that I’ve had with girls, the immersion has changed not only myself, but others take on everyday life. We have all come back with inspiration to change not only our lives, but ways to advocate for Indigenous Australia.
Some Guugu Yimithirr language:
- Shadow – Miilu
- Shallow – nyinda
- Shelter – bayan
- Aboriginal – bama
- Beach – Yuwaal
- calm – Milin
Akira Nicholson (Year 10)
During each of the 16 days since we returned from our immersion in Cape York, I have found myself wishing I could go back and do it all over again. It was one of the most fulfilling experiences of my life, and one that has completely changed my outlook on the country I call home.
At our final pre-departure meeting, we, as a group, came up with a list of the purposes of an immersion:
- Learning through experiences.
- Surrounding yourself with something.
- Being in a different environment.
- Meeting new people.
- Gaining a perspective of something new.
- Getting out of your comfort zone.
Looking back on the trip that we had, I can confidently say that every one of these aims was achieved. The hands-on experiences helped to bring classroom learnings to life: hearing stories from Traditional Owners, witnessing their connection to Country firsthand, seeing rock art sites in person and learning about traditional land management from those who have been doing it for tens of thousands of years. I was completely surrounded in a different environment, way out of my comfort zone, and it was the best thing for a hyper-clean, control-freak, city girl like me. I made and strengthened more connections than I can count: with Traditional Owners, group leaders, new friends, old friends, teachers and everyone in between. Finally, I gained so many new perspectives. I have a much greater appreciation for the Traditional Owners’ long-surviving culture and connection to Country. I have a new passion for increasing the usage of traditional land management practices. I now know how it feels to be Welcomed to Country, and the safety and reassurance that it gives you. I understand and respect the relationship between people and the land so much more.The Cape York immersion taught me more than I had ever hoped it would. I am incredibly grateful to everyone who made it happen and I cannot recommend it highly enough to anybody thinking about participating in the future.
Ilana Patkar (Year 10)
