What Does Being Australian Mean To Me

By Jan Smith

Today 26th January is Australia day and I have been quietly enjoying thinking about it all.

Is it the smell of a hot summers day and newly mown grass that always reminds me of the smell of cold water melon? Yes.

Is it the sensation of the hot sun beating down on unprotected limbs, seeping through the pores of my skin, while browning them? Yes.

Is it the memory of driving for 300 kilometres, stopping to change drivers and peering off into the distance where the long, straight black ribbon of bitumen disappeared into the heat haze off the horizon and knowing that our next destination still lay another 250 kilometres ahead? We had not passed another person, place or seen anything other than wide, hot dry land sweeping off into the hazy distance for the past 300 kilometres and knowing that the scenery was unlikely to change for the next 250 kilometres. Is this isolation and distances part of being an Australian? Yes.

Is it lying in bed and being woken up by moonlight shining in your eyes off the ocean? Yes.

Is it the freedom of not having to join long queues? Yes.

Is it the joy of still looking people in the eye and smiling at strangers without fear or expectation? Yes.

Is it the freedom of being able to walk anywhere we want to without fear? Yes.

Is it the memory of standing on a wide open plain on the Barkley Tableland and feeling like I was standing on an upturned saucer and if I could just reach that little bit higher, I would be able to touch the Stars? Yes.

Is it remembering hearing the crunch of cold frost underfoot while tramping up to the cowshed to milk the Cows on a cold winter’s morning? Yes.

Is it the memory of chapped lips burning from the oranges that our Mum always made us have in the winter time but they always made my lips burn when riding my bike home in the late winter’s afternoon from school? Yes.

Is it the pleasure of remembering in peace all the good things that I have enjoyed in my life? Yes.

So what does being an ‘Aussie’ mean to me? I think I am greatly indebted to my pioneering forefathers who strived for a life of freedom.

No life is trouble free, but we here in Aus have been blessed by not being encumbered with historical feuds passed down through the generations. We enjoy the freedom given to us by people who fought and gave their lives to preserve their integrity, independence and freedom.

Being an Aussie to me means I have to always be honest, straight forward and fair. I need to stick up for and with my friends through the good times and the bad times.

I need to pass on to my children’s children, a country that looks out for their mates and their environment. I need to keep the spirit of Australia strong by being a contributing member of my community. Because Australia is made up of many different communities and if we all accept each other as we are and strive to keep the spirit of Australia strong, we will indeed be revered by the coming generations.

It’s a big ask, but we are a big country. And we are all “Aussies”.

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