This content was created by Dr. John A. King. This content was uploaded by Dr. John A. King. This is a YouTube video titled "MJ’s story. Part #1. Warumungu. Tennant Creek." (metadata timestamp: 2024-12-07). The excerpt is an oral personal narrative / storytelling monologue (primarily one speaker labeled SPEAKER A) in English with Warumungu and other brief language insertions. The speaker from the Tennant Creek/Warumungu context recounts childhood memories (birthplace, names like "Onion" / Kinyuru), interactions with dogs, clan and naming practices, traditional mourning rituals, work in the cattle industry (drover, stockman, horse breeder), relationships of trust with white employers, an experience of jail and prayer, and reflections on Christianity and cultural identity. The recording reads like a first-person life story with cultural detail rather than a diarized multi‑party conversation.
Chapters
Nice. This killgai, right, like little billabong. All the babies, they're sleeping. You got dogs here right around. That's all the girl dogs, all the male dogs here. White man trouble got a horse looking around, my baby, we sleeping down the grass like this, look. In the hollow, just cry. That's right, pass it. Start with lay down, they can't cry. And dog will suck on the dog milk. So people walk past, we drinking milk. Girl dog lay down too. And the male one sits up on edge, just watch him, doesn't come near us. Wow. And I say the song, we sing him dog and all, we sing song for dog. They used to pick it up, they used to have it. Picked us when we was born, told us sit on outside of ring. Mother coming in, all the dogs. So we couldn't get milk. To keep quiet for white man. That was yours when— that was you when you were growing up? When I was a kid. When you were a kid? They took me down. Really? I can still take you there today, show you that birthplace and where I get my name. Another place there called Asian version. There, my name come out in Singiniru. Got this all big baby. I was a small one there. The little onion, I think the baby call him Giniru. I mean onion. Onion. Little onion. I had a far, far living cousin in Bawla, even named Big Onion. Big Onion. And I have a brother in Tumut, he was named Onion. And you are named Little Onion? Onion, yeah. Kinyuru. Kinyuru. I become the seed of Old Onion. My father now call me Father Father. The skin change. Yeah. Yeah, because they want to start, they still spiritual. When they looking for their family, they come and find Sonny, me. That's what they all let come, man. Even your clan, they come anywhere, even here, because you met the leaders, you come. Not like what they do. They're what puppy dog. They forget about Lord Jesus, man. Can't never forget about him. And that's why people should cry. They need to get themselves to cry and split the head open. Break the leg, cut them something. Now I see woman cut across the breast, cry sorrow. I look at him, why are people doing this? What they gone mad for? They knew what the person died if you do something wrong. They knew what he face then there. So they cut himself. They were going through the same pain what they doing the pentagram. Say like, how you can Torture, but not torture them. Something hurt and hurt, bleed and cry for family member that go down there. And people look at that, look at what made what a clean bed. That client, I know, have babies down there. Mom of the bank baby should bury them on top of the tree. Ah, yeah. The bank baby become bunker bunker. It's very hard bunker bunker. Yeah. करेगे, करेगे, कटी, कटी। see we need to do that cooperation best cooperative we can bring is कुर्मलो। माये fuck up she feel you। so men and women travel together? yeah travel no in the beginning he gave us men and gave us women only put us to sleep night woman To live together, travel together. And he said, we will work this land hard. Women will be in pain in labour. And that's what we're doing. We're working this land hard to do it right by the Creation. But these people come and change it. Say we never worked. We're not— I was a drover, worked in the cattle industry. Used to drive cattle from Walk from the dance floor in Treasury up to Queensland. I was only 16 years old. Then I become a horse breeder, head stockman, bull runner. And these people, we go work with them, they trust us. My sons would go up there, it might be 20 miles, go check that water if the tanks right. Back then they had no radio. Sometimes we'd be riding and the horse would drop toilet. Come back, tell them, yeah. That pump might be right for 2 days. Okay, dude. By our word alone, that white man trusted us because we couldn't lie to one another. If we lied about the water, we would have lost a lot of cattle. So truth been telling all the time in the bush between white and black. Couldn't lie to one another. Hmm. People different. They blame everybody. They blame white man. They blame black fella. They blame anybody. They're too afraid to ask who you really are. Like today, people don't know who you are. They know you, but they don't know who you are. Yeah. Yeah. But when they know you, do know you through me, they'll be fucked. I'm gonna give him a— I'm gonna Justin get a car problem back there. I can't get him. Which one? Your car? Justin's car, yeah. Where is it at? Christian Drive. Flat battery. I was gonna fuck up with it yesterday, but went to jail. When I went to jail, I never felt scared. I used to be when I went in. I went in, it felt like another hotel room to me. I went in and I prayed. I said, Lord, now you got me in. If that's what you want me to do, I'll be here for you. But give me signs so I know what I'm doing. I look at him, I'm back to him, nice to me. I look like I'm not going to be in jail. And the senior sergeant got up, look at that thing, you haven't got much thing record. So they let me out, I was going back to see him Friday. I know, just think of saying to me, don't bother. But on the day they sent me for the court, I'm going to write the thing down, I'm dead. Because I told them straight out, I've been nice to that copper, sergeant anyway. I've got nothing against you, mate, I said, all of you. My law is white bread and I'm the man. I'm going to get you out of here. Man, I speak for Jesus. So I've been talking like that lately, straight up. And I'm still mentioning his name a lot, but now I'm starting to mention his name a lot, man. Yeah, even else when I go, other man go laugh. I put up all this bullshit. I'm glad my young from learning. He worked up now. Yeah. He said to mother, Dad, I know what the purpose in life was. That's good. Well, remind reborn of Jesus. Yeah. He prays sometime when he lay down. Yeah. Yeah. When we grow up, though, we just got to remember who he is. Yeah. Sometimes people, I don't believe in Jesus. I'm nice with you. He made me from dirt. Yeah. I got a lot to answer, me. I got a culture that tell people come from dirt. Yeah. If people don't listen to me, I'll suffer too. Yeah. For not giving my story. Yeah. Yeah, it's true. Yeah. We have to give our story. We have to be a witness. Yes, witness for when they coming. Yeah. Yep. Good, good. You know, we say after we go, isn't it a beautiful day today? Happy day. We all happy every day until somebody come across us. Cibo jagu real? Tak. Tak. Cibo jagu. Cibo jagu. Cibo jagu. Jagu.
