Watch out! here comes a political statement!
To make a political statement is a bit scary for me, as my Scottish, Presbyterian, shearer Dad used to say to my Irish, Catholic, mum of six kids:
"no politics, religion or sex at the dinner table"
This rule effectively closed off potential arguments or debates.
Perhaps this explains my naivety in all those areas as a young adult, setting off me on a long journey of often painful discovery.
Barcaldine NSW is the home of the first shearer's strike, and the first outbreaks of workers bucking the establishment.
There I found a rich history of the Australian Worker ethos, as well as evidence of the beginning of community having a voice in decision making.
A history of bucking the establishment being in my genes, I lingered on to see what life lessons I could learn in this small, neat town whose residents displayed an evident pride in its origins.
I was drawn to the beautifully preserved Tree of Knowledge in the middle of the main street.
The Tree is most famous for its connection to the 1891 Shearer’s Strike.
Legend has it that the striking shearers held their meetings, plays and assemblies in the shade of the 200-year-old Corymbia aparrerinja ghost gum.
In 2006 the tree was fatally poisoned; however, the dead trunk & branches were taken to Brisbane to be preserved.
The restored tree was returned to Barcaldine and re-erected under an Award-winning timber structure, designed by Brian Hooper and Michael Lavery.
The structure gives an illusion of a shade canopy covering that area previously shaded by the tree.
Once again, it is an important place to meet, reflect and remember those who fought for better working conditions.
Coincidentally, as I rested in its shade, I answered a phone call asking me to participate in an anonymous political survey about the Mallee Federal Electorate.
The sitting Member in Mallee had been asked by the Prime Minister to leave his Cabinet position because of his involvement in an Asian sex scandal.
The young family man had also announced he would not be standing at the next election.
I suspect this survey was a damage control exercise funded by his Party to determine views of the voters in the previously blue-ribbon seat of Mallee.
I sat under the Tree to complete the survey and then to reflect on the matter afterwards.
I thought of how our first Parliament was composed of Independents with no Parties. They grew in time as alliances were formed.
Labor Party leaders love to have their photos taken under this Tree and consider it the place of birth for the Party.
It is not only THEIR sacred ground; it is the sacred ground of political Australia and time worn struggles to have community voices heard.
All sitting and aspiring politicians would benefit from visiting, sitting and thinking under this Tree of Knowledge.
The journey outback to reach the Tree has lessons to teach about resilience, tenacity and values of foundation politicians.
More can be absorbed by reflecting in the Tree’s shade, about our rich history, listening for lessons from the ghosts of those keen, determined folk who long ago sacrificed self for the better good,
Then, taking time to cogitate on the present, the future, their role in the big picture, they can return to their electorate, better equipped to lead Australia.
I am not. nor have I ever been, a member of any political party.
As a community capacity builder, I have always stepped aside from any involvement in order to get the best outcomes for my community no matter who is in power.
My experience of sitting under this dead tree touched me profoundly, I believe the spirit of the tree lives on and delivers a powerful message to those who listen.