On the weekend of 8-10th November families from Karri Kindergarten / Class 1/2 joined us at Nowanup for our 7th annual Nowanup Family Camp.  We had an approximate total of 65 people, 35 children of various ages and 30 adults including parents, staff members and five Elders.  As well as Uncle Eugene and Aunty Eliza, we were honoured to have senior Elders Uncle Aden Eades and Aunty Annette Eades join us for the weekend.  Emerging Elder Aunty Lynette Bolton also joined us to lead a dance workshop and facilitate the creation of our special Moodja ‘Christmas Tree’ mural for the upcoming Birak Festival this Friday evening.

As well as our customary telling (with his permission) of Uncle Noel Nannup’s Carers of Everything story-cycle over the course of the weekend, on the Saturday we had a rich morning of activities ranging from woodcraft and basket-weaving through to rag doll making with Nan Eliza and Nan Annette and the painting of the mural with Aunty Lynette.  Saturday afternoon we split into yarning circles, women and girls joining Aunty Eliza and Aunty Annette, and men and boys sitting with Uncle Aden and Eugene.  After a feed of the Aunties’ damper and yongka stew, to finish the afternoon we convoyed out to the Six Circles revegetation art site to participate in a lively dance workshop with Aunty Lynette.  Of course, the weekend was punctuated by many singalongs and wonderful music throughout. 

On Sunday morning we concluded the camp with a nine car, very dusty, convoy to Nightwell, or Kepwampwimbirrup, where, after being welcomed to the site by the Elders, Understory (Ashley, Bruce, Laura and Wren) sang a song that Ashley had recently composed based on the story of the site.

Special mention must also be made of the meticulous organisational skills of Ariel as chief caterer and director of the rostered kitchen helpers.  Every meal and snack break was ready for the children on time, allowing for the free flow of all the other activities over the weekend.

One of the characteristics of Nowanup Family Camp is the uncanny combination of somehow being action-packed and very chilled and relaxed simultaneously.  There is a deep sense, difficult to capture in words, of us all being held and celebrated by Country, or Noongar Boodja.  We all get to step out of our day-to-day concerns and be together in this timeless sense of community for a short weekend.  The experience is very healing for the Elders, who are reminded of their childhood days on the Gnowangerup Reserve, and for all the participants young and old.  The catch phrase for Nowanup is “Healing Country, Healing People”, and I’m confident we all had a taste of it on this very special weekend.

Bruce