week flying past

It's only thursday and i can't even remember what i did on tuesday... lemme think.

Tuesday we did planning for the Ngukurr language program. That went okay, although it's not flying along like last week. We didn't have anyone to help out for Nunggubuyu or Ritharrngu. Everyone else was a little distracted or something too, but we did get a fair bit of work done. Oh, one of the committee members, E, came to ask about that bloke who I was having problems with (see the previous post). He was asking why he was being a bit full on and reassured me that everything was fine and I've got everyone's support. That was lovely.

By the end of the day, we had lessons planned for two and a half languages. But somehow I was still working at night, making worksheets n flashcards... just little jobs. crikey, i need to take it easy. I didn't get to bed til late, and didn't feel very refreshed in the morning.

So the morning of language classes, and it was erratic at best. Mami R and Wawa A went to pick up some people and were gone for most of the morning. Still nobody was interested in Nunggubuyu and Ritharrngu. One Baba G had to go to Katherine for an x-ray and the other Baba G was off somewhere too... I later found him playing cards and was rather cranky. I'd ordered lunch for everyone so that we could all stay there, have lunch, then go to class... but lunch was late, I drove around to gather who I could and finally we were sorted and were set up at the school on time, ready to teach three out of five languages. I tell you, it's only me that gets this stressed and exhausted... I wish I could just chill out more, or I wish the other mob would stress a bit more!

Anyway, no kids came to start off... i don't know what happened, but we just waited there. So the little kids missed their lesson. Then the next group came, and then the big kids too. Everything went reasonably well. At least we were pretty organised. Overall we're doing a good job. The school is happy and community mob are happy and the kids are having fun too.

I was bloody buggered by the end. I just cleaned up and went home and laid down for about three hours until i got too hungry. then i ate, and slept.

And today I woke up, still tired. And packed up and went off to Hodgson Downs again. By the time I got here, I felt okay, but you should have seen the last hour I was in Ngukurr! First Mami R and Wawa A come to Language Centre while I was still packing. I gave them a lift to the shop. At the shop, my gajin J asked for a lift to Hodgson Downs, my uncle E asked me to help him read a letter, auntie F wanted to know where I was going, Baba G wanted to talk to me about his financial problems, J told me to go see Mami N, Mami N asked me to buy her Kangaroo tails in town and to pick up someone to take to Hodgson Downs, her husband J told me he wanted to have a language centre meeting next week, my other Baba G asked me to get his cds at Hodgson Downs, S wanted to talk to me about Language Centre business and E wanted to have a chat too and my Mulri asked where I was going too because he wanted a lift to Katherine.

Anyway, I got to Hodgson Downs and worked quietly in the school for a while... yes, quietly!! what a treat. Everything's still quiet. So nice. I'm going to cook some tea and relax some more.

Here's some more language from this weeks lesson: Rembarrnga this time! eyes: moermoe-na, ears: ganam-na, nose: giya-na and mouth: dala-na. So now you can sing "eyes, ears, nose and mouth":

moermoe-na, ganam-na, giya-na, dala-na,
giya-na, dala-na, giya-na, dala-na,
moermoe-na, ganam-na, giya-na, dala-na,
yarra-jalji langoe burrh-a.

All together now! hehe....