Didgeridoos and Boomerangs!

                                      

   

Near the end of our trip to Australia, a visit to the Tjapuki Cultural Center outside of Cairns provided an interesting peek into the lives of the Aboriginal people who inhabited the coastal and rainforest regions of Australia long before settlers came from England. Four young dancers, their bodies covered with markings in white and black, kept us captivated as they enacted legends from the past to the mysterious sounds of the didgeridoo.

    A musician played the hollow, cylindrical, wooden instrument by breathing puffs of air in through his nose and out through his mouth almost simultaneously. A melancholic, deep sound was produced, which was changed by using his vocal chords and tongue to imitate kangaroos hopping (boing, boing, boing) and other birds and animals inhabiting the rainforest.

     When asked how he learned to play the instrument, the young musician said that his father taught him as a boy and that he had played it his whole life. Women participated in the ceremonial dancing; however only a few selected men played the didgeridoo, which was considered sacred by the tribe. This knowledge and skill would be passed along to their sons and on through the generations.

     

After the ceremony, our group was greeted by a Tjapuki warrior who led the way down a wooden boardwalk to a “women’s” area where a maiden explained the role of the women in the village. She showed many different seeds, nuts and fruit which were gathered for food and also demonstrated how leaves, roots and plants were used as cures for ailments. Young girls were taught by the older women how to identify and utilize plants in the rainforest, important lessons which often made the difference between life and death. Food gathering, preparation, providing clothing, helping sick family or tribal members and child-rearing were challenging occupations in that primitive environment.

      The “men’s area” was interesting as well, with explanations of various weapons which were used for hunting and protecting the village, the main responsibilities of the warriors along with teaching their skills to the boys. The boomerang was an important weapon used by the Aborigines. It was fashioned out of wood, was flat on one side, had two or more wings and would fly in an arc if thrown correctly. When given the chance to try it out, several people in the group discovered that throwing a boomerang wasn’t as easy as it looked, although some, including Al, succeeded in having it come back.

     The stories, skills and knowledge important for their survival were taught carefully and intentionally by the adults to their children through the centuries. It was good to see so many youth still involved in keeping the Tjapuki traditions at the cultural center.

       What things are most important to us and how are we teaching and modeling them, not only to our children but to all of the people whom God has put into our lives? Honesty and integrity? Obedience? Purity? Faith?

        I pray that ours will be the legacy of a living, vital relationship with God through His Son, Jesus Christ.

“Fix these words of mine in your hearts and minds; tie them as symbols on your hands and bind them on your foreheads. Teach them to your children, talking about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up.” Deuteronomy 11:18-19 NIV