January 26th is Australia Day, a national holiday marking the arrival of the British First Fleet of ships into Sydney Cove in 1788 and the raising of the British flag claiming Australia. The holiday has also been referred to as Anniversary Day and Founders Day. The holiday is somewhat controversial, like our Columbus Day, and some refer to the day as Australian Natives’ Association Day (ANA), Invasion Day, or National Day of Mourning. Present day celebrations reflect the diverse society and landscape of the nation and are marked by community and family events, reflections on Australian history, official community awards and citizenship ceremonies welcoming new members of the Australian community. In reading about the history of Australia Day, I found it very interesting that Britain came exploring for a new place to place their convicts after the loss of the Thirteen Colonies. I had forgotten that the southern colony, now Georgia, had been established as a penal colony, and that Britain had plans for establishing other penal colonies in the colonies. It is interesting to see how the indigenous people of Australia are, or are not, embraced. As you might expect, that spectrum is similar to our racial divide in America. Aboriginal people, often called Abos, have populated Australia for 65,000 years and they have a very rich culture that is spiritually based and maintained through oral tradition. It does appear that Australians are trying to be inclusive in showing acceptance and respect for First Peoples of Australia.
Christine and I went to church with Louis this morning. He is currently responsible for setting up the sound system and the Powerpoint slides for the order of service and music, which causes him great anxiety. He also sings in the choir, so Christine was really keen on hearing him. The church, Holy Cross Parish, is a new building, very modern, light and airy. However, it was very hot and humid and everyone was rather uncomfortable. What I found nice was that windows and doors were open so we heard all kinds of bird songs during the service, which I really enjoyed.
In keeping with Australia Day, the start of the service was this affirmation: “We would like to acknowledge the Darkinjung and Guringai people who are the traditional owners of this land. We would also like to pay respect to the elders’ past and present of the Darkinjung and Guringai and extend that respect to other Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander People present.” The Darkinjung and Guringai refers to the local land councils in the area, major landowners on the Central Coast, participating in formal joint management of some areas of state forest in the region. They represents over 450 local Aboriginal residents. The Darkinjung Local Aboriginal Land Council are self-appointed caretakers of the Central Coast of NSW Australia.
After church, because it was so hot and very humid, we spent the afternoon at Lou’s, again watching tennis, and preparing for our evening guests, Bradley Calleija, Alex and Gloria’s youngest son, his wife Fiona and two of their three children, Lachlan and Jemma. Christine and I had met Bradley many years ago on Cape Cod and so we were really keen on seeing him again.
We had a lovely evening. Jemma is a delightful child, full of life. She had a great time playing with Banjo, especially feeding him chips, including from between her toes so Banjo licked her feet which delighted her immensely. Lachlan was impressive as he participated in a discussion of politics at the dinner table. Almost all our conversations with everyone in here in Australia eventually turns to President Trump. Fiona, a legal secretary, is a lovely young woman and obviously a wonderful mother. And Bradley is always smiling and laughing and is very positive. He has a good personality for his job, working for the local council as a building inspector and handler of issues related to people not being compliant with building codes. They make a beautiful family.
Happy Australia Day!