The power of print and ‘pressing pause’
Editorial
When my grandfather died in August, he was holding my hand. In the other, he had a notebook. His gentle, sloping scrawl filled the pages with handwriting as familiar to me as my own.
Many of the pages were filled with names. Without context, they didn’t mean much: ‘Judith, Nadia, Alkyne, Peggy, Susan, Renee, Laxmi, Amid, Nesme, Gizelle, Alvin, Nikesh, Bidhata, Sunita…’
The list went on. In total, I counted more than 51.
Each name belonged to the carers, receptionists, managers, physiotherapists, and nurses he encountered during his time at Southern Cross Care Onkaparinga Lodge Residential Care in Hunterfield Heights. Even his podiatrist got a mention.
At the top of the page, he’d written the words for ‘goodnight’, ‘thank you’, and ‘hello’ in the myriad languages spoken by the staff who cared for him.
Grandad was a writer and to his dying day, took great delight in learning about their homeland. Months have passed and I still can’t find the words to adequately thank the Southern Cross Care team for the joy they brought him. The diverse mix of ethnicities and backgrounds in that building filled his heart and mind with excitement every day. Their smiling faces were a daily reminder that you’re never too old to stop learning about the world around you.
Last month’s Migrant and Refugee Sunday Multicultural Mass was also a display of the wonderful culture and connection migrant communities bring to our nation. Each month, we endeavour to fill The Southern Cross pages with their tales. Our cover story this month focuses on the Albanian community which gathered to mark the tenth anniversary of the Canonisation of St Mother Teresa of Calcutta (page 12). We also travelled to Clare Valley to visit the region’s Polish Hill River Church Museum, once a bustling Catholic hub for Polish migrants (page 5), and sat down with Sr Hieu Tran whose life story spans her childhood in Vietnam to her recent silver jubilee among the Dominican Sisters of North Adelaide (page 7). We also journeyed deep into the outback with students from St Paul’s College as they accompanied Catholic Mission to learn more about our First Nations culture (page 14).
A personal highlight this month was chewing the proverbial fat with retired priests Fr Peter Milburn, Fr Bob Wilkinson and Fr George Nader (pictured) who graciously allowed us to tag along to an outing to Willunga’s Saint Joseph’s Church (page 8). There, they told us about the important role the Clergy Life and Ministry Team play in helping them navigate life’s next chapter. It was like spending a day out with my Grandad, Especially Fr Bob Wilkinson, former editor of The Southern Cross, and a man who definitely knows how to weave a great story.
As I flick through these pages, I feel gratitude for the small team that lovingly puts the newspaper together, including new designer Annie Millard. There’s nothing like the smell of print, especially when it tells inspiring stories about ordinary people with extraordinary lives. Please get in touch if you have a tale to share (or someone in your parish deserves the spotlight).
And to you, our dear readers. Thank you for taking a moment out of your day to peruse these pages and read about your wider community. In a world of ‘clickbait’ and distraction, it is important pause and reflect on the diversity that makes South Australia such a wonderful place to live.
You can reach me at kspain@adelaide.catholic.org.au – I look forward to telling your stories.
