My week started at Sorry Day in Perth, with a sand mural which was made by a local indigenous artist Acacia Collard. The picture above does not show the completed work, which was awesome.
Later in the day, it was used by indigenous and non-indigenous dancers as their corroborree ground.
This week is Reconciliation Week in Australia, a time when we commemorate all the important historical milestones in the long road to recognition and reconciliation in this country for our First Nations.
Today is, rather uncomfortably, WA Day- the anniversary of the proclamation of Western Australia as a colony and possession of Britain, with all those uncomfortable associations of dispossession and distress for the people who were here on their land when white people arrived.
It is a time for reflection for those of us who care about justice.
This afternoon we went to Walyunga National Park, about 40 km from where we live, to see the river after the early winter rains. It was a glorious afternoon, and the river was lovely. I was reminded about how much I love this place -and yet I was born in another country.
It is my hope that all who live here can come to love the land and each other.
