Outback Work
My Outback work included a stint as a school bus driver. I have spent much of my time since 1986 in outback work. Much of this included negotiating with aborigines and aboriginal bureaucrats. I was brand new to the aboriginal culture when I landed in Ti Tree NT but learned as I worked in various jobs and became accepted into the community. One of the first things I learned was the importance of identity to aborigines. Everyone had a place to fit into. While many people did not know my “whitefella name” they knew my aboriginal name, exactly what I did and the type of person I was, from their perspective. Once we were given our aboriginal names we were expected to observe the basic customs of helping family members and observing protocols in social relationships. This was often difficult as we often only became aware of our kinship to a family member when they asked for a loan. I started my outback work at Ti Tree driving one of the school buses, but have covered that story on another page. I also did some work at the school which had over 100 aboriginal students and seven white students. I tried teaching basketball and indoor cricket but the kids had adapted their own rules to make their games faster and more exciting. Another time when I was working in the outback at Aputula community I was drafted in as a football umpire, but I was de-listed after only one quarter for not understanding the rules. There were two distinct Language Groups among the aborigines at Ti Tree, the Walpiri from Ti Tree Station to the west, and the Amutjre from Sterling Station to the north. They didn’t get on! Foolishly the pub had only one open day for Aborigines to have a drink. This was a mutual arrangement between all parties. We lived on the other side of a large flat area in front of the pub and the antics of closing time every Thursday both amused and shocked us. Every one rolled up when the pub opened with as many as sixteen people in one car. But when it came time to go home they didn’t all seem to fit back in. However some of the fights between the two groups became savage and bitter before the police were able to break them up. We grew vegetables for a while, expecting to supplement our "outback work" income with their sale. But as soon as they were ready for market it seemed all of our customers were our relatives, and expected free vegies. We only had to deliver one lot of vegetables to the aborigines in a place called Archie’s camp just out of town, then every one knew about it. People turned up at all hours asking for vegies from then on. Aborigines love to travel. It was a traditional way of life after all. If any one found out I was going out bush for a picnic, half of the town would turn up asking for a ride. Once, as part of my work I had to go out to Ti Tree Station in Clancy’s little three cylinder Suzuki 4WD. I ducked into the caravan to get the keys and when I came out the Suzuki was sitting flat on its tyres. There were eleven aborigines crammed into it. That left no room for a driver so the trip was abandoned. On other occasions we took 8 to 10 people packed into our Kombi on picnics out bush. The aborigines always returned the favour by pointing out and gathering bush tucker, and by relating some of the dreaming stories of the area. They were memorable days. Our lack of understanding of traditional ways and our caring nature led to an uncomfortable situation at one time. “The Kid”, who was about 12 months old at the time, had an aboriginal girl friend, Loretta, who was about 12 years old. She came over to play with ‘The Kid” every day after school. Loretta told me she didn’t have parents. She was living with her aunt for a while but as they had five children of their own, it was a temporary arrangement. The aunt eventually approached "Mrs Dave" to ask if Loretta could live with us for a while until something permanent turned up. Loretta moved in, and every thing seemed all right for a while. I was in the roadhouse one day when an aboriginal woman came up and demanded money saying she was Loretta’s grandmother. The unusually demanding nature worried me. I started asking around town and was shocked to learn that Lorretta was being promised as my wife. I protested and sadly Loretta was moved to Alice Springs. Other Outback Work at Ti Tree included assisting at the Power Station and with the water supply. I even was the town gardener and cleaner for a while!
Willy Jiparula making a Digging Stick to sell to the Gallery.
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