''Mother Earth''
Justice & Advocacy
“I will be giving thanks for the gift that First Nations knowledge has given me by helping me to understand the sense of connection I have to the place in which I was born and lived the first third of my life,” says The Very Rev’d Dr Peter Catt
Mother Earth
I belong to this land
It runs through my veins
It’s the earth in my bones
It’s the dry dusty plains
It’s the whispering wind
As she blows through the sand
It’s the sparkling salt water
That trickles through my hands
It’s the feeling I get
When I return to my place
It’s deep down inside me
It’s my Mother Earth space.
I belong to this Country
I’ve walked in her dust
I have weathered her storms
I have learned from her past
It is respect for my Mother
It meanders through my mind
It clings to my spirit
To my soul it does bind
It’s that feeling I get
When I walk in this place
It’s deep down inside me
It’s my Mother Earth space
Nola Gregory, “Mother Earth”
Source: Mother Earth – Creative Spirits
I spent my childhood and adolescence in and around Taree in The Manning Valley on the Mid-North Coast of NSW.
My family moved away from Taree not long after I left school. As a result I have only been to Taree three or four times over the past 45 years; each time usually for just a few hours. I have, however, driven through The Manning Valley multiple times on the Pacific Motorway over those years.
Approaching from the South, one gets one’s first glimpse of the Valley, the town of Taree and the mountains on the northern side of the valley as one tops the hills at Koorainghat. The view is something like that in the attached picture. Every time I drive across those hills and catch a glimpse of the Valley I experience a deep sense of connection; and, a feeling of deep joy.
For many of those years I did not reflect on that feeling. The work of paying attention to the road soon took over from the feelings of contentment and connection. It was only once I started listening to the stories First Nations people tell about their sense of connection to the land that I developed the language to express what was happening to me as I topped the hills of Koorainghat.
Wednesday is the International Day of the World’s Indigenous Peoples. It is the day the UN has put aside for us to celebrate the ways in which the knowledge of Indigenous people helps us understand our place in the world, can assist us to overcome the problems the world faces, and to dedicate ourselves to protecting their rights.
On Wednesday I will be giving thanks for the gift that First Nations knowledge has given me by helping me to understand the sense of connection I have to the place in which I was born and lived the first third of my life.
Peace,
Peter+
First published in the St John’s Cathedral Precinct e-news on 7 August 2023.
Editor’s note 9/8/2023: The Seasons of Creation is celebrated from 1 September to 4 October annually. Resources may be downloaded on the Season of Creation website.
The ACSQ’s first Sustainability Roadmap was launched earlier this year. The Sustainability Roadmap lays out a framework for the different parts of our Diocesan community to formalise Sustainability Action Plans in a staged rollout.
Jump to next article
