Thalie: “Well, I have a lot of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander friends, so we don't celebrate Australia Day, but we gather and we tell stories. And in fact, probably my husband and I are probably going to be at home by ourselves that day. But we aim to share stories that reflect their heritage and values and stories of where we're from, and stories of connection, and stories of what's important to us, as all of us are Australians. We view the day as a time for connection, reflection, and hope, discussing potential future changes to the day, such as a name or date change. This practice has been ongoing for six or seven years.”
Jake: “I'm gonna go down to Wunjunga Beach, which is about 35 minutes south of Home Hill and go down to the beach with my family, and my friends. We're gonna spend the day down there. We're gonna go fishing, catch crabs, and probably gonna go hunting for some pigs, too. It’s a beautiful beach down there but it’s full of crocs, so you wouldn't want to sit there too long. But yeah, just hang out with my family and friends for the day.”
David: “Australia Day, obviously, we (my wife and I) support that. It's not a problem. I love the idea of Australia Day. I believe we will relax because we're going back to work at school on Monday. I'll probably just take it easy and enjoy it with a couple of friends. I also plan to fly the Aussie flag because in the past that’s what we did, proudly displaying the Australian flag. I think there’s a growing weariness in the country with divisive issues and I welcome the push for unity on Australia Day. I'm just a bit over all the stuff so it's great that the politicians are now coming out and actually insisting that we come together instead of finding reasons to be pulled apart all the time. It suggests a renewed sense of obligation to participate in the celebrations.”
Kelly: “Well, this year we're fortunate that it's my sister in law's birthday, so we're going down to Airlie Beach, and spend a lot of time looking at the ocean, and hopefully having a few cocktails. We’ll be taking the kids, spending a bit of time with them, and hopefully a little bit of time without them, too. The kids love getting the flags and getting involved with Australia Day ideas but we're probably a little bit more low key traditionally. What we've done before is gather around my parents pool and invite friends over. So yeah, a bit of a relaxed time by the beach with family before the start of school, celebrating a birthday and Australia Day.”
Richard: “To celebrate Australia Day, I reckon just some casual plans for the day, which include having a coffee, smoking, walking around, and possibly going for a drink at the pub. Not too much you know, just happy. I’m happy, for Australia, happy to be here, and happy to celebrate in my own easy way. I have flags in my house. I have an Australian flag. I have a Southern Cross flag. And I have an Australian animal flag, that’s on the side of my house. For me, it's just being around friends.”
Thalie. Photo: Mark T. Rasmussen
Jake Harvey (17). Photo: Mark T. Rasmussen
David Keyes (66). Photo: Mark T. Rasmussen
Connie (6) and mum, Kelly Lund (42). Photo: Mark T. Rasmussen
Richard Minojlovich (51). Photo: Mark T. Rasmussen