why I will be voting YES to the voice

 

why I will be voting YES to the voice

 

I go to the makers, not to the mockers

 

 

now you could go this way or that

there’s more than one way to go

 

treaty then truth then a voice

voice then a treaty then truth

 

there are many ways to go

and we’re only just finding the map

 

have you noticed how the names have changed?

 

it’s just recently

 

there were these names before

most people didn’t know but they were there

nobody had written them down

 

now we’re finding out

that’s a good thing

don’t you think we should find out where we are?

 

you could ask for more detail

I’d like a more detailed principle please

you could say that

 

but isn’t the point that about a principle

that it’s straightforward, simple

something everyone can understand

 

like

I acknowledge these people were here

before me

here for a long time

 

like

they talk – we listen

we listen to each other

everyone takes a turn

 

like the people we couldn’t hear before

… they get a go to speak now

they tell how things are for them

they tell how they think things should be

 

it shouldn’t be too much to hear

somebody else’s truth

of course not!

that’s why I’m voting to hear

what the firsties have to say for themselves

 

I mean the people who were here such a long time

the people whose place this was

before invasion, dispossession

 

most people live in a stolen country

and there’s something we can do about it

 

truth is the road to justice

there can be justice when there’s a treaty

we’ll have to listen a lot to get there

 

and maybe we don’t already know the best way

that’s why we need to listen

to talk

 

and we will

we’re getting to it

 

I’d like to point out that this matters to us all

because it’s about who we all are

what we call ourselves

how we feel about that

 

most people don’t know how they got to be here

some people can live with that

some would like to find out

 

you could just stay at home sulking

you could shoot yourself in the foot

 

but this is about how to live with ourselves

how to turn bad faith good

 

holier than thou won’t help

 

you could pretend all sorts of shit

like we wore the white hats all along

we were the good guys

did the right things

did things for their good

like it was only natural

or might is right

or smooth the dying pillow

or even

they can just be us, can’t they?

 

but none of that seems to have worked

 

so it’s time to wake up

to wake up and listen

 

we’ve got to get on with this

to get on our way

 

I’m going to vote for the voice

that’s just a very little thing

a bit of responsibility  

it’s owning who I am

and where I am

and the fact that I have a say

 

not everybody always did, you know

these things were fought for

people died so we could be here

things as good as they are

so we could be having a say

 

it’s up to us now to make things better

 

you could bear about a placard say

‘never satisfied’

or

I am victim

yours forever

so sincerely

 

or else we could shake hands, move on

we could put our heads together

 

so that was wrong

we can make this right

 

yes, let’s try

for bettering this world

the only one we have

 

there’s close the gap

there’s

change the date

change the flag

change the name of the place

 

there’s so much to do to make right

 

we’ll need a whole new constitution

 

but today

it’s just this one little thing

 

somebody made us a generous offer

we only have to acknowledge, to listen

just to make a start

 

I will be voting for the voice

just simply because I have one

and everybody should

 

because there’s ‘walk together’

because there’s heed your words

there’s hear your heart

because I have been welcomed here

so I’ll RSVP

 

because not being a zombie

I don’t want to feed on fear

 

no – I’m voting for hope

because it’s just respect

 

because it’s time to make a start