Me, Antman and Fleabag was travellin though river country and decided to stop by and spend a coupla days with his cousin, Jake. Ant and Jake was real close, they grew up together and was more like brothers than cousins. It upset Jake a lot when Ant went to live in the city. He followed him for a while but couldn’t settle. Said he couldn’t feel his blackness in all that concrete. Couldn’t see the stars, smell the earth or hear the whisper of the old fullas when it was quiet and dark.
Jake was real in touch with bein a blackfulla. He could read the earth and knew before any weatherman when it was gunna rain, when you was gunna have a drought, all that kind of thing. He knew when trouble and sad times was comin too, cos the willy wagtails told im.
Anyway, this time we pull up and there’s no sign of Jake. The front door’s open, but he always leaves it like that in case someone needs a feed or a bed and he aint home. So we walk outside and old Mrs McCormack calls out to us. We wander over. She’d know, if anyone would, what Jake was up ta.
She gives us a big kiss and picks up Fleabag for a cuddle and tells us that there’s been some sorry business. Jake’s been asked to take care of things. She doesn’t want to go into anything cos she reckons it makes her feel funny inside, but says Jake’ll tell us when we see im. ‘He’s down at the old water hole,’ she says, ‘with a whole heap of other fullas.’
She tells us she’s just seen Gus Hill walk past on his way to the pub with Jake’s order. She reckons if we hurry we’d catch him and could fetch Gus and the supplies back out to Jake. It’d help everyone out.
Gus Hill is Jake’s dog. A pure white little fulla cept for a big tan heart on one side. He was wanderin past Jake’s, lookin scrawny, tired, thirsty and hungry one day and Jake called im in. He give im a feed and a drink and told im he could hang around if he wanted to. Gus took im up on the offer. He had a tag round his neck with the name Gus Hill on it, but no one ever come lookin for im.
Anyway, Jake taught im how to do lots of things and Gus seemed happy to go along with it for his room and board. Cos Jake aint got a car or a phone, he puts messages in a little pouch round Gus’s neck. He’s taught him to go to the pub or store with his order and they bring Gus back with it later and collect the money. Sometimes if he’s too pissed to walk, he’ll send Gus round to relations or mates with messages if he needs to yarn with any of em.
Anyway, we decide to go and pick up Gus and go out and see Jake. We tell Mrs McCormack we’ll catch up with her later and cruise off.
We git down the pub and there’s Gus sittin inside with a bowl a water and a snack. He’s real happy to see us and makes a bit of a fuss over his old mate, Fleabag. The publican, Curley, comes round from the counter to shake Ant’s hand and give me a kiss. He shouts us a beer and we tell im we’ll fetch Jake’s order out for im.
We git out to the waterin hole and there’s the biggest mob of fullas out there. Lots of kids and dogs, and lots of elders. Flea sees Jake and jumps outta the window and goes barrellin over to im. He looks real surprised to see him and grabs im and starts cuddlin im. We open the door and let Gus out and go over ta Jake. He starts cryin and grabs Ant and holds him real hard. Then he gits me in a bear hug.
‘Whut the fuck you fullas doin ere?’ he yells.
We tell im we was passin and thought we’d call by for a coupla days.
Ant asks im whut the sorry business was all about.
He tells us ta have a beer then we’d go for a walk.
Bout half an hour later we walk over to this mound and we sit on a log and he tells us the story.
‘Some fulla out on one of the properties found a big heap of old bones lyin all together. He reported it to the police and they found out it was the bones of blackfullas who’d been shot round a hundred years ago. Anyway, the fulla felt real bad cos it woulda been his people whut done it. He went down to the Land Council and asked how he could set things right and they tell him he could have the bones reburied in the proper blackfulla way and if the old fullas whut died was happy, their spirits would come home to rest.
‘So they come and asked me.
‘I was real happy to do it. Those poor old ones’ spirits would be out there floatin on the wind cos they died so violently. They must be buggered and need to rest in their own place by now.
‘So I got together the mob and we collected the bones, and cleansed them in a smokin ceremony and wrapped them proper and reburied em and we had another smokin ceremony. Now we just waitin ta see if the old fullas are happy and comin home.’
Jake tells us to hang round if we want. We was real honoured to be asked and Jake took us to the burial place and we knelt beside the big mound and held hands while Jake sang a song in the lingo real quiet and soft. Gus Hill and Fleabag started to howl real soft too. It was scary and lovely at the same time.
That night we sat up eatin emu and johnny cakes and singin and yarnin. When ya went off into the scrub to go to the toilet you could hear the soft voices floatin on the wind. Later we all sat quiet. The whole place felt real peaceful. We could hear the river flow and the soft rustlin of the leaves on the big old trees. Jake reckoned the old ones would’ve sat under the same trees all those years ago. Then Jake told us all to not make a sound, so we went silent and suddenly we could hear the old fullas whisperin in the night. Jake reckoned they was happy and was on their way home.
Funny thing is, next morning we all woke up at the same time. We looked over and saw Flea, Gus and the rest of the dogs all lined up and lookin up into the sky. Their ears wuz all pricked. Next thing, we hear the biggest noise and look up and this big flock a cockatoos comes roarin over our heads and disappears into the sky.
Jake and everyone starts huggin one another and jumpin round. Jake comes over and grabs us both. ‘They’re home. The old fullas ave come home.’
We sure did celebrate that night. We invited the old farmer and his family along. Jake reckoned they really needed to know they done the right thing.