2011 - Theses - Flinders University

White Lives in a Black Community: The lives of Jim Page and Rebecca Forbes in the Adnyamathanha communityTracy SpencerVolume One Creative Writing Component: Excerpted Chapters from Volume Three Appendix OneWales and lawful means of support, and that he so lodged or wandered for sometemporary and lawful occasion only, and did not continue to do so beyond such occasion,shall be guilty of an offence against this Act. 64It’s hard to know if the law envisaged the possibility that the said ‘wanderer’ might be a non-Aboriginal woman. Both Rebecca and Jack give ‘Bourke’ as their place of residence, and donot return to Winbar.Bourke, 1914As storms gather above the dusty streets of Bourke, Jack and Becky cross the river by thenorthern bridge, and Jack takes Becky to the camp at North Bourke, on the western banks ofthe Paaka. See Becky riding on her seatrunk on the back of the cart, and Jack walking at thehorse’s head. She wears that wide, warm smile of hers, as a new bride should.Adelaide, 2002I asked Frank how the marriage was viewed at Winbar Station. Frank’s tone was serious:No, it wasn’t the accepted thing by a long way, oh no…She could never understand why she wasn’t connected and recognized in the Australiancommunity, because she couldn’t see anything wrong with her marrying an Aborigine …But they didn’t come back to the station … Well, Mum always spoke well of her. Shesaid, ‘She’s a very good girl.’ But Becky never would accept the fact that her childrenweren’t as good as anybody else’s. That got under her skin. 65Flinders Ranges, 2001 – 2002Daisy tells her family, the story of their great and great great grandparents.I tell them. I talk about her sometimes, [to] my kids. I tell my nieces … how she’s comefrom England, a white woman … And I think everyone else is proud of her too, that shecame out and married an Aboriginal man... 6648