...music and art...
'I had very little in terms of clothes, you used to go to school in bare body, in just a nesur. Nesur is our term for what they call lava, lava.
'At that time I knew only little of English language, then I started to take notice because my teacher Bob Miles was interested to learn Meriam, and we sought of hit it off. He would teach me English and I... and I'd teach him Meriam Mir.
'It took me two years to master it, not that I consider meself very good in English, but at that time I thought I was good at it cause I could get myself understood.
'I admired very much this guy called Bob Miles. He made me appreciate a lot of things that the Whiteman had... to offer, things like music and art.'
'At that time I knew only little of English language, then I started to take notice because my teacher Bob Miles was interested to learn Meriam, and we sought of hit it off. He would teach me English and I... and I'd teach him Meriam Mir.
'It took me two years to master it, not that I consider meself very good in English, but at that time I thought I was good at it cause I could get myself understood.
'I admired very much this guy called Bob Miles. He made me appreciate a lot of things that the Whiteman had... to offer, things like music and art.'
Keywords: education, language, Meriam Mer, Miles, Robert 'Bob', 1940s
Eddie Mabo interviewed by Nonie Sharp, 1981.
Author: Sharp, Nonie
Source: Mabo, Edward Koiki
Author: Sharp, Nonie
Source: Mabo, Edward Koiki