Prime Time 5, Coursebook mit Audio-CD

Text: Going home 1 Before you read What comes to your mind when someone talks about “going home”? 2 Reading: When and where? Read the story and highlight passages that refer to times and locations. This short story was written by “JB” (his name is a secret) fromWulagi, Northern Territory, Australia. JB writes about a girl of the “Stolen Generations”: At the beginning of the 20 th century, many Aboriginal children were separated from their families in order to be “civilised”. The girl was standing off the road on the edge of the spear grass. She didn’t signal me to stop in any way, but when I saw her shoulders slump as I passed, my foot just slipped off the accelerator and the car slowed. I reversed 1 and wound down the passenger window. “Are you OK?” “Pretty tired, mister, come ’long way.” I motioned her forward until her head was at the door. She looked dirty and exhausted. “You need a lift 2 somewhere?” Her face brightened and with a nod of her head she indicated the way I was traveling. “Near the crossing, big fallin’ rock lying in the creek 3 . That place.” “I know the rock,” I said. It was about a half hour’s drive. “Get in, I’ll take you home.” I didn’t usually offer lifts and don’t know why I did this time. “Thank you, mister.” Gingerly lifting her sore, bare feet, she sat next to me, slowly sank into the backrest and put her hands together in her lap. The posture reminded me of nuns, so as we rejoined the road I spoke. “Have you been in school?” “Yes, mister.” “Where?” She turned her head to the window and watched the endless spear grass whip by. When she replied, it was in a faltering 4 voice. “Don’t matter now, long way from here, finished now, goin’ home.” She turned back to watch as in the distance the country was changing from flat floodplain to rocky outcrops. She looked to the approaching hills and seemed to brighten with recognition. “That’s my mother’s country there, mister.” She fell quiet again with a frown 5 . Her hands found each other back in her lap and began to churn. “Does anyone know you’re coming home?” I asked. She shrugged. “My little brother said he’d wait for me there.” We swept around a sprawling mesa and came across the creek. A large chunk of rock face had broken away eons ago 6 and rested like a huge arrowhead pointing down the waterway that had little billabongs 7 dotted along its well- worn course. The girl was excited now as the car left the road and came to a gravelly stop on the other side of the little bridge. She hopped out, and bowed her head toward me. “Bin traveling long time, mister, thanks for the ride home.” 1 to reverse: to go in the opposite direction 2 lift: I offered her a lift. = I asked her if I could take her somewhere. 3 creek: a very small river 4 faltering: becoming weaker 5 frown: opposite of smile 6 eons ago: a long, long time ago 7 billabongs: little pools of water along a river/creek that are left over from a time when the river had more water in it 5 10 15 20 25 30 35 40 45 50 55 76 Strange realities 6 Nur zu Prüfzwecken – Eigentum des Verlags öbv