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St Joseph’s Immersion Experiences
Each year at St Joseph’s we take students in Year 11 on transformative immersion experiences to places where life is very different to here on the central coast. We travel simply and with open hearts to serve however we can. In 2017 students travelled to Mumbai in India and to Warmun in Western Australia.
India Reflections
“Going to India was like entering a new world. We were confronted by things we had never seen before, with new places, food, people and heat.”
“Looking back on my experience in India I have learned that our world is so incredibly big which makes my problems seem so small.”
“My most surprising moment came from the people living in the slums of Mumbai. These people had very little – their homes were nothing more than the cubby houses we used to make in the backyard when I was little, just tin and wood pallets. They were very basic yet families lived here. I expected these places to feel sad or the people living here to be angry or depressed but reality was the complete opposite. These families were full of joy, welcoming us into their homes, they had such strong family units. It really highlighted how different our society is – we spend our lives wanting more, more money, more material things but never feeling fulfilled with what we have. These people had nothing but they had joy and love – they were happy with each other. We can learn so much from these people – rather than thinking those new shoes or that new dress will make you happy just choose to be happy. No amount of material things will ever fill your heart – better to just make the conscious choice to look at everything you do have in your life now – not what you don’t.”
“India is an amazingly beautiful and unique country but it’s the people that make this immersion such an amazing and rewarding experience. Not only did we meet such great kids over our stay but we learnt a great deal about ourselves – our resilience to cope in confronting situations and how rich our lives are. We live blessed lives and we should be thankful for all our opportunities and for all we have, especially our families and our friends.”
Warmun Reflections 2017
“I cannot explain enough how much this trip meant to us students. Not only were we opened to new exciting experiences but the connections we made with the Indigenous community will never be forgotten. I think we can agree that this trip has inspired us immensely and opened our hearts to the Aboriginal community and their amazing culture.”
“My experience from the immersion had a massive impact on my view of the Indigenous culture and the tight connection they had as a community and to their land. One thing that stood out for me was the two-way system which was taught in the school where the students were educated about both Aboriginality spirituality and Christianity, creating a religious foundation for the community to encourage and support future relationships between the different cultures.”
“The land that Gija people had once walked freely upon for thousands of years was pastoralised in the late 19th century – fenced off and divided into cattle stations, forcing the Gija people off their land and more often than not into slavery. These large cattle stations are obviously still in oiperation and one of them, Lissadell Station, is managed by the parents of a couple of white students who attend the school.
My story is concerned with the wisdom of a little Gija boy called Johnny. Johnny is a cheeky little kid with the widest and most infectious smile you’ll ever see and I was privileged one morning to hear about his weekend adventures. Some talked about fishing down at the river and others talked about what games they had played in the streets. Then a couple of the Abiriginal boys piped up and said “We went hunting on Mackenzies land”. Without hesitation, johnny replied, “Nah, nah, that’s our land and it always will be!”
For a little boy, still so young, to be so confident and proud in making such a statement, truly hit home to me the strength of their connection to land and how they have suffered through dispossesion of it. Johnny’s statement is a testimony that these kids, despite their dreadful history and constant challenges, are an inspiration and source of strength”.
