Mountain Climbing and Intimate Stories

We had this morning off as a “free morning,” but a number of us decided to accompany Ellen on a hike up Bluff Knoll, or Mula Billa (“many faces”) as it is known to Noongars, which is the tallest peak in the Stirling mountain range.. The day started off pretty rainy, but we bundled up and set off. As we approached the mountain the rain let up a bit and only sprinkled a little bit at we took on the first part of the trail. The physical trail is a pretty well maintained track – mostly stairs built into the natural dirt and rock.

Our group quickly spread out a little bit – I was second in the pack – and I found it very peaceful to have the solitude to myself as I climbed. As the weather wasn’t great, we were only going to climb part of the trail and not summit. (Ellen has climbed Bluff Knoll before and said it is very windy at the top normally, let alone in such weather.) Our initial stopping point was the waterfall, but after we reached it, the group decided to press on a little further.

As we ascended up an uncovered part of the trail that snaked around the mountain, we were treated to incredible views of the rest of the mountains and the surrounding countryside. After a climbing a bit further though, my knee started to hurt, so when Danielle and Elise agreed to head back down, I went with them. The rest of the group climbed further, but we made it to the base of the mountain right as the clouds opened up and really started to rain. All of a sudden these thick clouds moved in around the peak of the mountain, and we were really glad to be sitting at the bottom, waiting for the bus.

Slightly soaked and cold, Joe drove the five of us (Jake and Chris came down a little behind us) back to our chalets and I climbed right into bed and took a very nice nap where reading merged with sleep in a really fluid way.

I woke up to a call for sandwiches around noon and we headed over to the pavilion where Cheryl, Eugene’s sister, had made lunch. As everyone trickled in, we gradually found ourselves sitting around talking and Cheryl shared her story of her experience as part of the Stolen Generation with us. We’ve heard a lot of personal stories by this point, but this was probably the most impressive one so far. She spoke with such passion, connecting both her own experiences with the present. This is really the first time that someone has personally spoken about the lack of sharing of stories, in addition to the terrible affects on family members including suicide and alcoholism. I really appreciate the depth and candor with which she spoke; it made her story all the more real and understandable.

As Cheryl concluded her story, the room fell silent as we all took in the power of her words. Eugene, sitting beside her, broke down into tears as he shared with the group that this was the first time he had ever heard Cheryl’s personal story. Despite being brother and sister, this was something they had never talked about before, as the pain was just too much to bear. It was really incredible to be a part of that first sharing experience between family members.

After lunch, we piled onto the bus and Eugene took us to one of the most impressive sites I we have visited so far, a woman’s birthing place. Though Eugene didn’t know much about the site, we were able to surmise that women would give birth in the natural freshwater pools that formed in the rocks next to the flowing river. The area, though, had this incredible feeling of secretness, perhaps because we were the first wadjellas to see the site, or maybe because the many shades of lush greens reminded me of the secret garden. Either way, I couldn’t take enough pictures, even though those pictures could never do justice to the beauty of that site.

We went back to the retreat and Cheryl taught a few of us to make damper before dinner. She was an incredible teacher, full of patience and compliments, and we made a surplus for our group dinner. After I lit a bonfire and we feasted on s’mores at the chalets. It took some time to light the fire today, as all of the wood was so wet, but it created really beautiful flames as well. Ok, bed time…it’s been a long day!

Peace,
Jill