My childhood in Australia was a magical time, that later evolved into nightmares. But not yet. Today... I'm taking you with me through my memories, to a trip with my father to Wollongong.
This trip would be a blessing to me; for my father it was another odd job to do. So we left very early in the morning, though it seemed more like night time to me. Which made it an instant adventure! It was glorious to see the sun pop-up around us in magnificent colors, while sitting next to dad driving his beloved Customline and Elvis singing to his soundtrack. He had worked hard on two jobs to get his hands on this beauty, and his eyes would sparkle like the stars I loved when he drove it. It was made in 1958, those days when cars were still beautiful inside and out. Consisting of blue, white and silver, the colors were very relaxing sitting on those bulky white leather sofas, heading down the road with dad's glittering eyes, the shiny chrome with Elvis crooning, we were passing the National Royal Park.
I have never owned a car. In the 80's, when I was old enough to drive, cars became ugly and boring to me. Besides, I considered them polluting and killing machines.
When I was still in high-school, I once went to the house of a boy I met at school. He lived there with his brothers, his father and a gang of dogs. Now, I did not know this at that time, but his father was a killer. He hunted kangaroos for fun, and would feed them to the dogs. Walking towards his home, the smell became revolting. The closer I got the sicker I felt, and when I arrived at the gate I couldn't believe my eyes. There was no grass just dirt, dog-shit and dead kangaroos.
His father had just got home and his truck was at the front, filled with blood and dead kangaroos. I left and never returned to this house, but it's something I will never forget and it changed my view on automobiles forever. And was one of the reasons I became a vegetarian at a very young age.
But this was 1970 and all cars still looked fabulous. My dad had a great sense of style and taste in music, so the trips with him were always fun, and we would discover something new and wonderful every time.
If all of us were on the road, these trips would sometimes last for days because he just kept on driving, so we would sleep in the car, and then drive on to the next adventure.
The trip to Wollongong took us through Sydney's National Park were we stopped to have some breakfast under a tree. Suddenly small twigs and seeds fell upon us, by cheeky king parrots! They were dropping them down on us, and having a lot of fun doing so. I was amazed. As our journey continued, I saw magical white blossom trees. Those trees looked spectacular at daybreak and as our car got closer to them, those flowers flew into heavens filled with morning light. It was magnificent!. They were cockatoo trees. Bare trees filled with white feathered screeching parrots, that awoke with the sunlight and then took to flight.
When I speak of magical times in Australia, it is nearly always connected to the nature there. And I would always feel this, from an early age. I also had a deep connection to birds, I haven't had since leaving Australia. I learned to love this country because of it's magical nature.
When we got to Wollongong my dad had construction work to do, but I could stay and play in an empty house on the other side of the road. I've always loved old abandoned houses, they were spooky, but never really frightening to me. So I was thrilled to spend the day there! It also had a huge wild tropical garden, were I could watch the funnel web spiders in banana palm trees.
Inside the house I found an old stuffed koala toy! And then I discovered a strange room filled with old bottles, logs and bark from trees. The next room I entered was filled with pillows, and on the walls there were beautifully strange paintings.
Suddenly I felt a hand on my shoulder! My breath stopped, and I slowly turned around in horror... only to see a big tall smiling dark stranger in front of me! He said I should help him paint his pictures, and if I would like to? I don't remember what I said, I don't think I said anything, but he gathered up some things and we sat down on the sunlit porch.
He began painting and showing me how I could do it. Well, I was amazed by this and proud that he let me paint on the same picture he was working on. And we must have done that for hours, but I enjoyed that so much that I forgot about the spiders or anything else. Besides he was telling me strange fairytales, that were like the Grimms fairytales my mother would read to me. Unfortunately, I don't recall these stories, the only one I remembered, (when I read books about Dreamtime) was the rainbow serpent. But, I ended up finding out a lot about Dreamtime, thanks to this dark stranger. I also don't recall his name, or if he ever told me? But when I left, he handed me the stuffed koala toy... I kept for many years, reminding me of his shiny black eyes and the magical art he had showed me.
Here is a painting that I love, by a wonderful artist. Her name is Colleen Wallace Nungarrayi - Dreamtime Sisters.
Thanx, until next time, Alex
Oh... here is a link to my collection of Dreamtime Art, that I adore...
https://it.pinterest.com/alexzondro/dreamtime/
Goodbye
Sountrack
