Hi folks and welcome to my Friday Reflection for 2nd August.
I write to you from the Northern Territory, Australia. I’ve been here just over a week. I’ve had the privilege to spend time in Kalkaringi, Daguragu, Lajamanu, and Katherine. During that time, I was blessed to sit with some senior elders. One of the many lessons they taught was how they can hold history with incredible grace and elegance.
It is the focus for today’s reflection: History can be held with elegance.
In previous reflections we looked at how history can hold hurt, horror, hope, and healing. The senior elders demonstrated how to hold all of those elements together with integration and elegance.
I witnessed them tell stories of first contact with Europeans. For some it was from their parents’ generation. For others, it was their lifetime and part of their personal memory.
They spoke about terrible treatment, of killings, beatings, massacres, segregation, and despicable behaviours. They hold this history. It is the story of their people, in their community, and in their lifetime.
They also shared some of their knowledge of ancient stories that connect people and place together in woven narratives of kinship and culture. They hold this history. It is their people’s stories from the beginning of time.
As contemporary community leaders, they also hold history of the current community and how things operate. They are the current knowledge holders, spokespeople, liaisons, and advisors. They hold the current history.
It’s not only remarkable that they hold that level and amount of multi-dimensional history. It is astounding that they do so with grace and elegance.
They showed me that you can do truth-telling without vengeance or malice. They showed me that you can be a rare holder of sacred (and powerful) knowledge without minimising others or abusing power. They shoved me that you can be strategic and forthright in engagement without selfishness or dishonesty.
These senior elders holding history with grace and elegance were the kind of people that make you want to be a better person.
I encourage you to find people who can hold history with similar outstanding qualities that demonstrate grace and elegance.
I encourage you to spend time with people who make you feel like being a better person.
I encourage and challenge both you and I to strive to be like these senior elders and be in the world with grace and elegance.
Be encouraged and encourage others.
Mark Yettica-Paulson, Katherine Northern Territory.
