This is Ntaria, this is the place where I grew up. I used to play with
my family and my cousins, I played softball, basketball, sliding down
the hill underneath the cross. Riding horses with our uncles and
cousins. Together on the horse, riding bareback. Uncle and Cousin
used to come and the little ones would say “I want to ride too” and
Uncle or Cousin would pick them up and put them on the horse, if
it’s a really little one they can ride there on the front.

We are sitting down and digging bush onions and talking stories
about things we used to do, like going out for bush tucker with
grandmother. Travelling out bush and getting bush onions, bush
beans. Talking about how they used to walk around, going fishing,
climbing up the hills, collecting bush tobacco and fruit, eating it,
walking back from far, far away. They used to walk around a lot,
maybe go fishing somewhere far away and then come back to do
cooking. Hearing stories about how they used to travel these lands.
Talking, so we know what stories they been telling us, getting
knowledge from them, passing on knowledge to our kids. We know
that we’re passing on to them from our Grandparents and Aunties
and Uncles, passing on to our Mum and Dad, passing on to us and
we’re passing on to our kids, for the future.

Getting together, talking stories, going bush. Keeping culture and
story strong - from my grandfather to my father and his brothers, and
to their sons. Telling stories about the country, how it is really
important for them and for our children. Passing on the knowledge of
how we came to this country, how country is really strong for us.
Passing on stories is important – from our fathers and to our kids.
Our sons and daughters can pass on the knowledge, telling stories
about how country is really important, so they can understand.

Me and my Aunty going out, doing bush medicine. And all my
aunties and cousins going out bush and getting together and smoking
little babies in bush medicine so the kids can be strong when they
grow up. And we are all smoking ourselves so we can be strong.
When we smoke, we are cleansing our spirit. The spirits - you
welcome them to feel at home. You have to visit the place that’s
important for you. Visiting your cultural place you have to respond
to the spirit people, let them know that you are coming, tell the spirit
people that you are welcoming the people near you, so that the spirit
people can know them. The place is speaking and welcoming the
person that is with you. You can feel it yourself, that you are
welcomed to be there visiting the country, you don’t feel
uncomfortable.