Trauma Trails, Recreating Song Lines PDF
Preview Trauma Trails, Recreating Song Lines
Author photo (Photograph by: Jeni Kendell) Judy Atkinson is of Jiman and Bundjalung descent as well as having Celtic–German heritage. She has worked within the area of violence/trauma for the last fifteen years. As ProfessorofIndigenousAustralianStudiesatSouthernCross University she hopes to build bridges between Indigenous healing practice within western trauma recovery processes. TRAUMA TRAILS, RECREATING SONG LINES: The transgenerational effects of trauma in Indigenous Australia Judy Atkinson “When I put down all the different things in my own personal story, things that had happened to me, the people who had died, I didn’t feel bad, just stronger that I had survived all this.And lighter because it was really like those blankets had been lifted.Also, I could understand why. I made decisions to take care of myself.” Spinifex Press Pty Ltd 504 Queensberry Street North Melbourne, Vic. 3051 Australia [email protected] http://www.spinifexpress.com.au First published Copyright © This book is copyright. Apart from any fair dealings for the purpose of private study, research, criticism or review, as permitted under the Copyright Act, this book may not be reproduced in whole or in part by any process, stored in or introduced into a retrieval system or transmitted, in any form or by any means (electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise), without prior written permission of the copyright owner and the above publisher of the book. Cover design by Deb Snibson Index by Max McMaster Typeset by Palmer Higgs Pty Ltd Printed and bound by McPhersons Printing Group National Library of Australia cataloguing-in-publication data: Atkinson, Judy. Trauma Trails, Recreating Song Lines: the transgenerational effects of trauma in indigenous Australia. ISBN 1 876756 22 5. 1. Spiritual healing – Australia. 2. Wounds and injuries – Treatment – Australia. 3. Wounds and injuries – Psychological aspects. 4. Violence – Psychological aspects. 5. Aborigines, Australian. I. Title. 155.93 This publication is assisted by the Australia Council, the Australian Government’s arts funding and advisory body. Contents Acknowledgements vii Definitions viii Prologue: Great-grandmother’s Gift 1 Chapter One Dadirri: Listening to one another 5 Chapter Two Song Lines and Trauma Trails 23 Chapter Three WeAl-li:Aprogram of healing 93 Chapter Four The Way of the Human Being I: The trauma story 146 Chapter Five The Way of the Human Being II: The healing story 189 Chapter Six To Unite Hearts and Establish Order 215 Epilogue: Healing Dreaming 267 Bibliography 271 Index 309 This book could not have occurred without the support of my family. It is therefore dedicated to my family, across generations, to the mothers and grandmothers, the fathers and grandfathers who have guided me across my (hi)story. They have provided me with a rich and diverse cultural heritage and have contributed substantially to whoIam. In particular I recognise Mike my husband, my children Andrew (who was accidentally killed during the time of the study—see epilogue), Carlie, Tim and Kate, and grand- childrenJessica,SarahandRebecca,whoremindmethatIam responsible for what I leave as a legacy to our future generations. Acknowledgements In 1992 I received a National Health and Medical Research Council Grant (Public Health) to investigate the various waystheFirstNationspeopleofCanadawereaddressingthe dual problems of alcohol and other drug misuse, as well as violence within families and communities. The conceptual and foundational development of what is contained in this book was made possible by the grant I received from the National Health and Medical Research Council and the new concepts and understandings I gained in Canada during 1992. NHMRC and the people of Canada, who taught me well, must first be recognised. A list of people deserve special thanks: Kayleen Hazlehurst, Robert Schweitzer, Jeni Kendell, Paul Tait, Shar Edmonds, John Cadden, Fran Collins and the Butterfly, Paddie Cowburn, Chris and Brigette Edwards-Haines, the Muirfamily,PriscillaIles,ThalepAhmat,StacyChamberlain, Hazel and Darryl Kaur, Cliff (Mosey) Mason, Dallas Fewquandie, Frank Kemp, Bronwyn Fredericks, Margaret Hornagold, Heather Toby. More particularly I am indebted to the many participants of the We Al-li workshops and the Indigenous Therapies Program who individually and collectively have taught me morethantheywilleverknow.Ithankthemfortheirgiftsof courage and clarity, and the sharing of their wisdom. From our experiences, deep and sustaining friendships have been formed.
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