Into the Outback
Personal Essay
By: Cassie Thompson
Word Count: 780
Intended Publication: Lives
The Land
Rover bounced along the red dirt, down a path that could barely be considered a
road. All around stood bare brown
bushes, yellowing grass, and miles of nothingness. I ground my teeth, sure that once the sun set
we would be lost. The danger of running
into a kangaroo also became more present, though I was hopeful that our sturdy
truck would survive a collision.
I was on a four-day service expedition to a
remote mining town in the desert of Western Australia. Riding with me was my close friend Nathalie
from my school in the United States, a girl from Singapore, and our leader, who
was an Australian. I was stressed about
spending the weekend in a predominantly Aboriginal community, since I hadn’t
interacted with them very much. I had
heard many white Australians in Perth saying how mean, dangerous, and
untrustworthy they all were and my passing experiences with them hadn’t changed
my mind. Whenever I saw them on buses or
on the streets they seemed aggressive and loud.
Before the trip, the coordinators had given us several tips, including;
don’t ask Aboriginal people any direct questions about themselves or they’ll
think you’re being nosy. This worried me
even more.
Luckily, the Aboriginal children we met at school
the next day were nothing like I had feared.
They were energetic, friendly, and took to us very quickly. We were invited to join the children on a
true outback, or ‘bush’ experience led by an Aboriginal policeman, Rex. Rex dressed like a cowboy: flannel shirt,
brimmed straw hat, light jeans, and leather boots. He was the stand up man of the Aboriginal
community and he often took the children out to learn about their heritage and
the bush.
Twenty
adorable and energetic children piled into Rex’s truck and ours, climbing over
us to look out the windows, or clambering into the driver’s seat to help steer.
I found it oddly comforting when one
small boy wanted to sit on my lap for the whole day. I felt that I had been accepted into this
little community almost immediately. We
followed Rex along dirt paths, winding through the scrub bushes and around
rocky outcroppings. Although I
immediately felt lost, somehow he seemed to know exactly where he was
going.
Every few minutes Rex would stop to show us
something and tell a story. He told us
about water holes, different uses of plants, and the huts that Aboriginal
people had lived in up until the 1970’s. I was amazed by Rex’s knowledge and willingness
to share with us as outsiders. All of my
fears had been unjustified and I started to feel a little ashamed of my
preconceived notions.
As we drove towards a large rocky
outcropping, the children all began whispering to us quietly about how Bigfoot
lived up on the hill and how so and so had seen him one night. I thought the story must be true since all of
the children in our truck were warning us of the danger with such solemn eyes.
In the late
afternoon, we stopped at a large salt river near the Aboriginal settlement. Rex told us that the river had healing powers
and confessed that he came down once a month for a soak to rejuvenate his body. The children raced to the water, abandoning
shoes and shirts; we soon followed. I
squished along the mossy bottom, trying not to worry that I couldn’t see my
feet through the mud stirred up by the children. After a few minutes I started enjoying myself
and dug my toes into the mud below. It was freeing, almost, to let go of any discomfort
and focus on the warm water around me.
The children
seemed to enjoy dripping all over us on the way back, but I was dirty enough that
I didn’t care and hugged one close.
Nathalie had a young girl sitting on her lap, who was comparing their
complexions. “My skin is normal but
yours is white,” remarked the girl as she put her arm next to Nathalie’s. Nathalie and I stared at one another, shocked
by such a profound comment coming from a child.
The girl said no more about it and moved on to the next topic.
Her comment wasn’t meant to make us feel
alienated, it was purely a statement of fact that she found interesting. The Aboriginal children had taken to us with
ease, despite potential beliefs about white people, if they even thought about
them. They allowed us to share in their
culture and learn things that we never could have without their openness and
kindness, something the stereotypes never accounted for.
Franklin Outline
Complication: Stereotypes scare Cassie
Development:
1)
Cassie meets children
2)
Cassie goes Outback
3)
Children accept Cassie
Resolution: Cassie learns
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