Two worlds apart

Hi everyone.  Welcome back I know that it has been a week since I last posted anything and I have done this on purpose, so that as many people who want to follow this link and blog will get a chance to add it to their favorites and get on board early.  http://joymakepeace.blogspot.com/ 

The other thing you can do is click on this RSS feed icon or next to the above URL which means you will be regularly updated when I add a new post. 

So far I have had nearly 1000 hits on this page, which I think is just amazing.  The majority of viewers are from Australia, but there have been viewers as far and wide as the United States of America, Alaska, Philippines and Germany. I am overwhelmed with everyone’s feedback and have been completely reassured that what I am doing is not just for my own benefit, but is to be shared with so many other interested people who have similar stories and feel a deep connection with the information that I am sharing.  

There are also readers who are quite new to this whole topic and are thoroughly enjoying my “openness”.  I may live to regret this decision, but my life as an Aboriginal person has often been under the microscope, so I don’t feel concerned by this, in fact I am used to it. For the past week I have been trying to work out what to share and I think that the time has come to introduce you to some of the members of my families.  I say families because as you are now aware there are two of them and I love them both dearly.  I therefore live in two worlds and I write in great depth about the challenges of this in my book, “Finding the joy within”. 

I have just taken an except from one of the chapters in my book to try and give you a taste of what is to come.

“Ya don’t sound like a Nunga and ya don’t you act like a Nunga?”  I must admit, I can’t even begin to remember what I said or did to respond to that question, but I sure know that it was a turning point in my early life in which every ounce of knowledge about who I was, was questioned by this one mans hurtful comments.  I went home that night and was absolutely boiling with rage. Rage at him, rage at myself, rage at my birth mother, rage at my adoptive family, rage at the Government and rage at society, both black and white. 

This experience really made me take a look at myself and see for the first time that yes I was different and yes I probably never will fit into the mould of what most people think an Aboriginal person looks and sounds like.  But you know the flip side of this situation is that non-Aboriginal people don’t accept me or think of me as Aboriginal either.  Nearly every time I go to the hairdressers you can guarantee that they will ask me, “I hope you don’t mind me asking, but what nationality are you?”   When I proudly tell them the truth “I’m Aboriginal” they say, “Oh, but you don’t look Aboriginal”.  They say it like it’s a compliment and that I’m one of the lucky ones that could get away with being mistaken as Indian, Sri Lankan or from some other foreign cultural background.  I hated it and hated that I didn’t have the right words to put them back in their place.  In the past it was an ongoing dilemma that I was faced with and one that found me feeling as though I was trapped between two worlds.  One in which I felt as though I didn’t belong in either world.  Even though in my heart I felt Aboriginal, I continually felt as though I needed to justify myself to both black and white people.

I would now like to introduce you to some of my family member, both black and white.

Makepeace family

 

Mum - Audrey

Audrey – is my mum and she is now 70 years old.  She is my #1 fan.  She has always been there for me and has always encouraged me, no matter what I decided to do.  I love her dearly and thank her for everything she has ever done for me.  

Kate – is my eldest sister.  She is 14 years older than me.  She moved out of home to attend boarding school when I was still very young.  She is a real lady and the elegant one of the family.

Fenwick – is my big brother.  He is 12 years older than me.  He lived at home for about the first 4 years of my life and then moved out.  He is a fantastic and talented artist who also has a great story waiting to be told.  He always tells me he will be rich and famous one day and even though he says it jokingly I truly believe one day he will achieve his dream.

Robert my brother and my great nephew Billy

Robert – is the brother that I grew up and spend the most time with.  He is 6 years older than me and I was his shadow.  He is very accident prone and has a very strange sense of humour.

West family

Mick my older brother

Mick – is one of my older brothers in the West family.  He grew up with Bob in country NSW.  I only met Mick in 2001 and from what I can tell he is a man of few words.   We continue to try and stay in touch.

Bob my brother and me

Bob – is Micks younger brother and my older brother.  Bob and I met in 1999 and we seemed to instantly click.  He too is casual in his approach to life and he always makes sure that I’m doing OK. 

Beverley - is my big sister.  She is like my soul sister.  We were definitely carved from the same rock.  We have the same taste in clothes and we have similar astrological beliefs.  

The following movie trailer captures some of the humour around the fact that I am black, but sometimes living in two worlds can be very challenging.

  

“See no evil, hear no evil” – Movie with Richard Pryor

  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IK1Pjgix79k&feature=related

Until next time. 

Joy  :)