Wondering what you're all doing on this Easter Monday?
Yesterday, we took a little trip to Lake Bolac to see an old homestead. We met the owner of a beautifully pretentious French gothic mansion built in 1875.
The owner, an elegant, well spoken Western District farmer lives in his 1930's childhood home on the same property. He runs cattle and sheep on the huge acreage. No-one has lived in the mansion since the 1930s. Twice a year he opens it to the public to help raise funds for its restoration.
I stood in a large crowd while he told the story of how he is personally bringing the grand old building back to its former splendour. As he spoke I thought he might have sounded a little bit Green. The SW of Victoria offers little in the way of Green so my Green radar is always up, hoping to discover a kindred spirit.
He talked about the disconnection between culture and environment and blamed technology. Can't eat technology he said. So afterwards David invited him to join us for a cuppa, provided by the local Uniting Church ladies (Jam and Jerusalem), in his lovely garden.
I waited for my moment and then asked him if he practiced sustainable farming on his land. He looked apologetic and said he didn't but continued to wax lyrical on the problems of overpopulation and our disconnection from the natural world.
I thought he might be gay...but you can't really tell these things unless you ask and that wasn't going to happen. David was already getting a little edgy with me for pursuing the Green agenda with this amicable, gentlemanly farmer who had owned a cafe in Carlton for many years before returning to the land.
The owner, an elegant, well spoken Western District farmer lives in his 1930's childhood home on the same property. He runs cattle and sheep on the huge acreage. No-one has lived in the mansion since the 1930s. Twice a year he opens it to the public to help raise funds for its restoration.
I stood in a large crowd while he told the story of how he is personally bringing the grand old building back to its former splendour. As he spoke I thought he might have sounded a little bit Green. The SW of Victoria offers little in the way of Green so my Green radar is always up, hoping to discover a kindred spirit.
He talked about the disconnection between culture and environment and blamed technology. Can't eat technology he said. So afterwards David invited him to join us for a cuppa, provided by the local Uniting Church ladies (Jam and Jerusalem), in his lovely garden.
I waited for my moment and then asked him if he practiced sustainable farming on his land. He looked apologetic and said he didn't but continued to wax lyrical on the problems of overpopulation and our disconnection from the natural world.
I thought he might be gay...but you can't really tell these things unless you ask and that wasn't going to happen. David was already getting a little edgy with me for pursuing the Green agenda with this amicable, gentlemanly farmer who had owned a cafe in Carlton for many years before returning to the land.
Then our elegant companion started bemoaning plastic waste in the landscape and along the roads and feeling encouraged I told him I am a Green and that I believe we will have to actually change the laws of the land to make things better for the environment but I didn't quite get to say...'and that's why we need the Greens in government.'.
Suddenly he said...'Oh that terrible Sarah Hanson-Young!' (Rolling eyes and waving hands.) 'She wants to open up all our borders to let everyone in and the Greens make such a big deal of the gay marriage thing!'.
My gay suspicions were shot to shreds, unless he was a gay who is against gay marriage, which isn't very likely and then I mentioned that a neighbour of his had written a book about a people smuggler who they call the Oskar Schindler of Asia. He'd never heard of her or him and shrugged his shoulders and with that gesture I knew that our fledgling acquaintanceship would not survive.
David had begun to shift in his seat and was looking uncomfortable so I said, 'Oh is that the time? We must be going.' And as a parting gesture David invited him to coffee at our place sometime even though he knew that wasn't going to happen... was it.
Sometimes I think Greens policies are too good for their own good. Perhaps we should weave in a dose of bigotry or a touch of intolerance just so that we can become, you know, main stream. But that's not going to happen either, thankfully.
Being the best, most virtuous political party in the world has it's down side. People do seem to want to hang on to a bit of prejudice, greed and unchanging hardheartedness. It would seem that the virtues of acceptance and inclusiveness are not best sellers, which would explain why so many still vote Liberal and Labor and also the rise (and eventual decline) of One Nation and Bob Katter's 'tea' party. ( Mad Hatter's tea party!)
It reminds me of that prayer 'Dear Lord, please make me good but not just yet.'
Perhaps we should cleverly disguise our inclusiveness to sound wicked and enticing. You know...like...JOIN THE PARTY THAT PICKS ON BIGOTS. I dunno. An overtly wicked title didn't seem to hurt The Sex Party! Perhaps we could call ourselves, 'The Green Sex party'?
I just wish we had some more time to get it right...to convert the world and save ourselves from climate change and deadly pollution. Please God, I'll be good right now if you give us some more time please? What do you think?
As an addendum: Karen Lea reminded me that many do actually see the Greens as wicked because they see the Greens stance on gay rights, pro-choice, anti-mining, pro-sustainable fishing, forestry and agriculture and pro-carbon price and mining tax and reducing funding to high profit private schools as evil and well...that hasn't helped us either. I guess we just have to learn to argue our case more effectively....either that or storm the citadel....and that's not gonna happen. Just wish we had more time to convince the world before climate change kicks in big time. :(
