Blackfellas - and Not-So-Blackfellas

     My tour leader in Kakadu and related areas of the Northern Territory in 1986 was half Aboriginal. "Because my mother is Aboriginal," he told us, "I am able to relate to them. But I would never be considered one of them. I'm khaki coloured."

     "Yellow fellow" is another term they used for mixed bloods. (I myself don't.) Aboriginal society makes distinctions which we whitefellas in the coastal zones fail to see. Nevertheless, in the interest of clarity, I shall now show you what Australian Aborigines look like.

     And in case anyone objects to my use of the term, "blackfella", kindly note that they use it for themselves, and call us "whitefellas", a term which causes no offence. I regard these words as informal terms, like "paleface" and "redskin" - not derogatory, but more likely to be used in informal conversation than in formal essays. Nevertheless, someone was taken to task recently for using the familiar word, "Aborigines" on the ABC. It is getting harder and harder to keep up with political correctness. In any case, here is a series of photos of what Aborigines look like. Make sure you scan down to the end, to see the significance.

Love, Honour, and Obey?

      When I was a boy, I happened to look through one of the women's magazines which turned up in my home, and read the advice column. A woman was complaining that her husband wanted to move to a new house in a new neighbourhood, and she didn't. What should she do? The female columnist provided some suggestions as to how she might get him on side, but she did point out that, as the head of the house, her husband would be the one to make the final decision. Up to then, it had never occurred to me (I was only a child, after all), but it suddenly made perfect sense. That is, after all, what headship means: to make the final decision on important matters.