So-much-makes-sense-once-we-get-the-connections4

Reconnecting with nature

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For thousands of years the plains in the Stirling Range were the hunting grounds for two groups of Aboriginal people - the Qaaniyan and the Koreng

There is a Dreamtime Story: ' How the Stirling Range was formed' Kangaroo people lived in the Dreamtime long ago. One family lived near where Cranbrook now stands: a male kangaroo, a female kangaroo and their joey.

Every day the male went off to look for food for his family. He stayed away all day but did not bring any food for his family. The female became angry, she went into the bush found a lot of food and she and joey had a big feast.

Later her husband returned and saw the scraps. Anything was left for him. He became very angry, picked up his spears and threw at his wife. It went straight through her heart and she fell dead.

The husband raced towards the east. The joey was upset at the death of his mother. He began to chase his father across the land. When he caught up with him, they had a terrible fight.

The joey killed his father near Bluff Knoll. If you look at the south, you can see the outline of the female's body. This is known as the Sleeping Beauty.

In many stories the Stirling Range is hostile, dangerous and associated with death. Local Aboriginal people never camped on any part of Bluff Knoll. Bluff Knoll, the highest peak of the Stirling Range was called also Puakaar Miial which means Great M

The peak is often covered with mists that curl around the mountain tops and float into the gullies. These constantly changing mists were believed to be the only visible form of a spirit called 'Noatch' meaning Dead Body. When a group camped near the

The first ship known to visit the King George Sound was the Dutch ship in 1627. However it was another 165 years in 1792 before French ships arrived. None of the above noticed the mountains. They stayed invisible.

The first recorded sighting of a mountain range was described on January 5 1802 by English captain Matthew Flinders aboard HMS Investigator. He called them a chain of 'rugged mountains'.

In late 1835 Governer Sir James Stirling travelled from Perth to Albany and he glimpsed some hills. Thus the 'rugged mountains' became the 'Stirling Range.'

Sir James Stirling observed one hill,but...

This unique mountain range with its hidden gullies...

and majestic cloud-capped summits...

and changing moods...

remained unknown to Sir James Stirling and remains unknown to anyone who fails to pass the first rugged hill...

This unique mountain range remains the 'Mountain of Mystery' for many people.

Reconnecting with my long-lost friends

Back to mountains with mud that slides

Slippery upon our hiking boots

Looking up the hills

their gentle, rolling and soothing sides

sharp rocky edges hiding in the mist

Walking all day

taking different paths

We are back in Stirling Range retreat

thirty five acres

of rugged mountain tops

a sense of space

listening to robins and wrens

holding breath to see

a Wedgetail eagle fly

drunk by the sweetest smell

of seven hundred flowering plants

chasing the hidden treasure

I see my Aboriginal friend

a Noongar woman

Yoondi

to cry

when she find a precious spider orchid 

in a sacred place.

' Long time ago, before the Wadjela /white man/ came,

this mountains belonged to my people.

Thousands of years we lived here

Koi Kyounu Ruff - mystery rugged mountains hidden in a mist

we called the Stirling Range'.

' Then my great great grandfather came

and cleared the hilly part of bush.

He ate the rabbit

before they built 'the rabbit proof fence'

then chased parrots or kangaroos

and killed many of your men

in his heydays of shooting

while his wife planted climbing rose

and called her: 'Australian Beauty'

My English friend Lizzie

stopped by and got hold of Yoondi's hand.

Back to mountains with mud that slides

Slippery upon our hiking boots

Looking up the hills

their gentle, rolling and soothing sides

sharp rocky edges hiding in the mist

' When my great grandfather Giovanni first came here,

many people were looking for gold

I was born on an olive farm

and my mum planted vegetables

and we had a cow for a butter and cheese,

when my baby brother died

my father planted vines for wine

and looked for good Italian boy to marry me.

I took salami and pasta to school

and everyone laughed and called me names

My parents never learnt to speak English

I just so desperately wanted to fit in

and find my ways.'

My Italian friend Maria stopped by

and got hold of Lizzie's hand.

Back to mountains with mud that slides

Slippery upon our hiking boots

Looking up the hills

their gentle, rolling and soothing sides

sharp rocky edges hiding in the mist

' My father was born in Kachin state,

next to the Kia's mountain,

just like this one but in a jungle

just the same...

he wore longyis,

a Burmese sarong

and my mother's face was painted beige.'

My Burmese friend Chin Winstopped by and took hold of my hand:

' I am so proud that our Aung San Suu Kyi

is so famous in the West.'

' I saw her in the news,

she is back under house arrest,

for so many years,

just because she is the oppositon leader

of the Burmese junta.'

I joined in closing our circle,

holding Chin's and Maria's hands.

Back to mountains with mud that slides

Slippery upon our hiking boots

Looking up the hills

their gentle, rolling and soothing sides

sharp rocky edges hiding in the mist

we talked about Aung San Suu Kyi.

' She lives behind a guarded gate

in a large run-down home

in a Burma's capital Rangoon

for the past sixteen years

she lost the contact with her English husband

is he dead?

and her two young sons

have grown up without her

but she refuses to HATE.'

Yoondi, Lizzie, Maria, Chin and me

breathing heavily on the way up

we reached the summit of the 'Bluff Knoll'

the highest rocky, misty place.

Breath-taking scenery opened in front of us

Yoondi, Lizzie, Maria, Chin and me

refreshing our memories

we knew each other for years and years

sharing our life stories

not only bright as wildflowers

in this sunny Spring day

but also those of colour grey

but we can forgive

we can forget

we are not scared of future

just like Aung San Suu Kyi

we do not fear and we do not hate.

' I am not scared of death

any more,'

I looked at my friends with new bright eyes:

' Cancer, accident, disaster

or just pure bad luck,

there are many ways to die,

but I still have place in this world,

I have a role to play

just small

how insignificant am I ?'

' Just like me,' said Yoondi.

'And me, ' added Lizzie.

'Me too,' smiled Maria

and Chin waved her hand:

' Kachin, Shan, Wa, Arakan, Karen and Mon,

different Burmese tribes keep fighting on.

We have 'Nobel Peace laureate'

but Burma will end in a civil war.

Aung San Suu Kyi is significant

but her voice was not heard

and her battle was not won.'

The clouds around us

turns red

in the setting sun

in the distance

a harsh bird call sounds

a wedge-tailed eagle

winged its way to the nest

after successful hunt

ignoring us

we are part of landscape

we are here or we are not

the rugged peaks of the Stirling Mountains

do not mind

we are insignificant.

Amazon Books

	Dawn Till Dusk in the Stirling and Porongurup Ranges Amazon Price: $19.95
	The Architecture of James Stirling and His Partners James Gowan and Michael Wilford Amazon Price: $116.85 List Price: $134.95
	DK Eyewitness Travel Guide: Australia Amazon Price: $16.40 List Price: $30.00