Australia Day
by
Paul F Walsh
Yesterday, we sat in the gutter harvesting six hundred litres of stormwater for our Placemaking Project in Rosann Park. Today, Susan used a small portion of our harvest to water our Banksia Birthday Candles.
These precious native plants protect our community time capsule, which contains Aboriginal artefacts contributed by members of the Awabakal community in addition to non-Aboriginal artefacts contributed by local residents.
Susan was ably assisted in her watering duties by Chester the Jester, our noble Staffador, who had earlier circled Lambton Park with the current Australian flag draped from his collar like a pair of tattered budgie smugglers, though it must be said that Chester’s budgies have been surgically removed.
If we can harvest stormwater to nurture a small piece of parkland containing Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal artefacts and history, why can’t our nation do the same for the large piece of parkland that we call Australia? Have our politicians and those who vote for them had their budgies surgically removed?
Can we as a nation grow a new pair of budgies in order to smuggle radical solutions into our collective consciousness rather than omnipresent corrupting conservative problems?
A new pair of budgies could lead to: actual national leadership; inspirational and visionary ideas; an end to fossil fuels; national water management and reforestation; a new but ancient approach to bushfire management; protection of our native flora and fauna; renewable energy; clean ocean waters; clean air to breathe; an end to corrupting corporate political donations; an end to media monopolies; a treaty with indigenous Australians; a balance of the sexes in our parliaments; a national corruption watchdog (named after Chester, perhaps); a new date for Australia Day; a new Australian flag and a new national anthem to reflect the birth of our new radical national consciousness.
Such are our thoughts as we sit in the gutter harvesting stormwater and as we stand watering the birthday candles for a newer Australia.
Happy Australia Day!
But isn’t it time that we grew a new pair of budgies?
Copyright © Paul F Walsh 2020