Daly River

We arrived in the Adelaide River township with our friends Collen and Arthur who we had met in Darwin. They were making their way to Adelaide for the Christmas period so it was great we could spend a few extra days with them before we parted ways. The caravan park is lovely with grassed areas and a big pool, it also has a pub, good food and is surrounded with many mango trees. Just down the road is the Commonwealth grave cemetery where many servicemen and women are buried who died in the bombing of Darwin and other conflicts on the sea and surrounding Islands. There is also graves of the civilians who lost their lives at that time. The graves are cared for by the war cemetery commission and they are beautifully cared for with the biggest mango tree I have ever seen guarding the graves of those men and women who are unknown. I shall include a photo of the tree and you can see the fruit hanging. We walk every morning to the gardens, it is so quiet, you only hear the birds singing. On Sunday we had a trip to Daly River with our friends and what a day it turned out to be, we just didn't expect that we would have such a fantastic experience and I don't think we will ever get another. First though I must mention the stop at the Robin Falls in the Litchfield National Park. We drove in and to be honest we couldn't see the Falls as I think with it being the end of the dry season they had dried up. What we did experience were flies galore and a group of young men swimming in the creek. They were miners and it looked like they had been drinking all night (this was at about 0930), they asked us to join them for a swim!!!! I said no way, what about the crocs? to which they replied "there is no crocs" Anyway we left them to their swim and heard no reports of croc attacks but they were certainly taking a big risk. As we were driving in towards Daly River and the crossing I got on the CB and jokingly said to Colleen "you can walk the river crossing to check it out and see if there are any crocs" and you can imagine her reply. A road train driver heard us talking and said over the radio where was our sense of adventure and you could pat the crocs at the crossing.....we did laugh! When we got to the crossing we saw a group of young kids both Aboriginal and white swimming in the water, on the rocks were some Aboriginal women. I went over to chat to them and asked about the crocodiles and how was it that they were swimming, one of the women said the crocs didn't come to this small area near the crossing during the day but they slept there at night so you wouldn't swim in the evenings. I got talking to the Aboriginal lady who told me that the group of kids were from a school in NSW and they came to stay on the community every year. The kids were Indigenous even though they looked European and they had some of the kids on their community visit the school in NSW, it was like a pupil swap project and the kids were having a ball in the water. The lady introduced herself as Miriam and asked me if I would like to join them for a bush tucker meal they were going to prepare for the kids, well I jumped at the chance. I went back to our friends who were just as enthusiastic and we followed their cars over the crossing as we had no idea where we were going to. We went approx 10kms and then went off the road and followed them on a track, we ended up in the most beautiful place I have ever seen in the bush. We were by the side of a massive billabong full of waterlilies and watched as a very young (about age 7) came out of it with an armful of waterlily stalks and flowers. I was absolutely amazed and could not believe what we were experiencing. When we got out of the car we were invited to sit in the group and were asked our names and introduced to the group. We listened to Miriam speak about what we were going to do and she invited us to join in the preparation of the bush tucker food, she also spoke very briefly about her background and her spirituality and relationship with the land. The waterlilies produced a nut which could be smoked on the fire or just eaten straight from the flower, we were to have damper and about 5 magpie geese had been shot that morning which we had to pluck and prepare. We were also invited to walk in the billabong to collect the flowers but I really did not fancy doing that as there were leeches in it and although Miriam said they will only stick on if you stay still I wasn't willing to test her theory. We all had a go at plucking the feathers off the geese and then a great big fire was lit and the geese briefly hung over the flames to burn off any missed feathers and to harden the innards. They then flicked off the seared bits of the goose with a twig and leaves, the bird was then taken over to another woman who then proceeded to remove very skillfully all the insides. The birds were then put on the fire and cooked. The damper was made with flour and water, then cooked in the fire, it was yummy as we put maple syrup onto it. It was all served up on our plates which was a pile of gum leaves. Now Brett (my son in law) and our family will be reminded of a time in Bali when they see the photo of the cooked magpie goose but we did try it and it was delicious. We left there feeling very special that we had been invited to this event and was able to reflect on the significance of the day as we drove back to Adelaide River. It didn't surprise me to find that Miriam was an artist and someone very treasured when I searched the Internet that night as I felt in my heart I had been touched by someone special and I shall never forget the time spent with her. I have included some information about Miriam which I think you will be interested in
Miriam Rose Ungunmerr-Baumann was born in the bush near Daly River in 1950. While Miriam Rose is a member of the Ngangiwumirr language group she also speaks four other local languages.
When Miriam Rose was about five years old she was placed in the care of her aunt Nellie and uncle Attawoomba Joe, a legendary police tracker. Miriam Rose subsequently moved with her aunt and uncle to live at police stations at Adelaide River, Pine Creek and Mataranka, where she attended government schools. While maintaining her traditional cultural education, Miriam Rose learned to "read the country" as well as the pages of her text books.
When she was aged about fourteen, Miriam Rose returned to Daly River and continued her education at the mission school.
In 1968, Miriam Rose undertook a Teaching Assistants course at Kormilda College in Darwin, and subsequently became a teacher's aide at the St. Francis Xavier mission school at Daly River. She returned to Kormilda for further study in 1971. It was during this time that she became keenly interested in painting.
Miriam Rose developed a unique imagery characterised in her acclaimed series of paintings, Australian Stations of the Cross. Early recognition of her work was also given when she was asked to illustrate Alan Marshall's book "People of the Dreaming".
As Miriam Rose's interest in painting grew, she used art increasingly as a means of encouraging children to express themselves. In 1974, the Commonwealth Government sponsored a secondment to Victoria, enabling her to work with art teachers in schools.
In 1975, Miriam Rose again returned to Daly River as the Territory's first fully qualified Aboriginal teacher and for many years held the position of Art Consultant with the Professional Services Branch of the Northern Territory Department of Education. During this time she visited schools throughout the Territory thus gaining the opportunity to advance her commitment to the inclusion of visual art as a part of every child's education.
On her return to the Daly River School in 1982, Miriam Rose was convinced that there was a need for more Aboriginal teachers to work among non-Aboriginal school children. She became deeply committed to ensuring that Aboriginal people had the opportunity to become qualified teachers and to manage their own schools. Miriam Rose continues to advocate that education is a matter for the whole community, and must be adapted to suit contemporary Aboriginal needs. She has shown great leadership and perseverance in meeting these objectives. For example, she encouraged other women from Daly River to study to become teachers and she initiated a very successful remote area, teaching education program. St. Francis Xavier School is now completely staffed and managed by Aboriginal people. Her commitment to the community is demonstrated by her role in creating the Merrepin Arts Centre, which fosters adult education with a focus on the visual arts.
In 1988 Miriam Rose was awarded the degree of Bachelor of Arts by Deakin University, through Batchelor College. Two years later, she began training as a school principal, and in 1993 was appointed to the position of Principal at the St. Francis Xavier School at Daly River.
Miriam Rose was awarded a Bachelor of Education degree in 1993 by Deakin University, and in 1999 gained her Master of Education Degree, with High Distinction. The focus of her work for this degree was the integration of traditional and western education for Aboriginal children and adults.
In 1998, Miriam Rose was appointed a Member of the Order of Australia, for her services to Aboriginal education and art, and for services to the Nauiyu community having been for many years a member of the local community council, often in the role of President.
In recognition of her outstanding service and contribution to the Northern Territory, in acknowledgment of her leadership and example in the fields of Aboriginal education and the visual arts, and for her contribution to the general community Miriam Rose was awarded an honorary doctorate from Northern Territory University.
In 2004, Miriam Rose was appointed to the National Indigenous Council, the Federal Government's advisory body that replaced ATSIC.