Not a review...

On Valentine's Day, the very lovely Dr. Anita Heiss sent out a tweet and face book status to one and all. Tweet a VDay tweet at her, send a VDay message via face book and she would send one tweep and one facebooker a free copy of Manhattan Dreaming .  Your Humble Narrator sent out such a tweet and my head near exploded with giddy delight when Anita tweeted back that if I sent her my address details she would indeed send me a copy.  (Not only did she send me one, but because she is generous and lovely, she sent one to all the tweeps who played along.)  My book arrived that Friday morning. Best of all, she took the time to write a small message in the front cover and sign it. Thank you so much. I love books and I love  books with personalised messages in them even more.  (I think it shows a level of care to give and  receive such a gift)

But anyway.

With one other book in my current reading pile (and by that I mean the pile of books I read just for me, not including the four novels and 1 play the kids and I are currently reading for our English and Literature studies, or the books we are reading for history, geography, science...well you get the picture.) I managed to pick Manhattan Dreaming up at 8pm on Saturday night.  I finally put it down just before 2am on Sunday morning after finishing it. Completely.

Since that time (it's now Sunday afternoon so 12 hours later) I haven't been able to stop thinking about it and all the things it makes me want to discuss.  And I will get to that in later posts.

But reading this has inspired in me a number of things. It's birthed the outline for several blog posts.  Posts I am unable to write just yet due to other things I should be doing.
And although this is not a book review, (I want to finish my second slower read through before I tackle that) it's certainly a big positive when a book inspires you, ignites the need to express yourself and provokes a need to learn, and tackle big things.  

But right now, I need to tackle the laundry!

"Because they don't look . Period."

.....because you don't look like or act like your people. Impossible! Because you are your people. You just tell them, they don't look. period. 

A very dear friend of mine sent me this link in a gesture of solidarity. Whilst she IS Jewish and I am not, the message in Vanessa Hidary's poetry can be equally applied to Indigenous Australians and pretty much all minority groups.

The amount of times I have had people shocked when I disclose to them that I am indeed Indigenous  is met with similar statements.
"But you don't look Aboriginal".
"But you don't act Aboriginal".
"But you're too pretty to be Aboriginal."
"But you're too smart to be Aboriginal."
"Oh it must be a long way back then. What percentage are you?"
"But I am darker than you!." (You'd be surprised by how many people over estimate the brownness of their tans, seriously.)

And yes, all of those statements are made in tones that imply it's complimentary to tell me I am not easily mistaken for Indigenous. Because to be obviously Indigenous is somehow a bad thing to be.

So to all my Indigenous family and friends, just remember, you are your people. Regardless of whatever stereotype it is you shatter in the eyes of the non-Indigenous, no one can ever take who you are away from you. EVER.