Reflection on 'Ngapigan (Grandmother)'

My inspiration for this poem came from wanting to honour the relationship of the grandmother and granddaughter. Same language word in Gathang, ‘Npapigan’. Ngapigan, a girl child, a woman Elder, an Ancestor, a deep cyclical relationship that exists through time and space.

The first part of the poem, Ngapigan Djuyal ‘Grandmother Talk’, I walk with my granddaughters speaking in a way that they will know Country and will pass this knowing on to their grandchildren. Each expression draws on a sensory engagement and this can lead to a deeper connection to Ngaya-Barray ‘Mother Earth’. Many cultural practices and learnings can radiate out from each of these expressions, for examples Buyiba Watiga can lead to a discussion about the reciprocal relationship that exists between trees and humans, the exchange of life force, oxygen and carbon dioxide, what the tree provides (shelter, medicine, food, implements, fire and resources), how to care for our trees (cultural burning, planting, ceremonies).

The second part of the poem, Ngapigan ‘grandmother/ granddaughter’ expresses the movement through the generational cycle.

The third part of the poem, Ngapiganbaa ‘grandmother/space/time’ expresses a space and time when grandmother carries granddaughter within the womb and the unbroken blood ties that binds them together through the eons.