You probably have some childhood memory of a bad haircut – perhaps one that was self-inflicted. When Emily Wurramara was about six she decided to shave off her locks. Her mother was mortified, but her grandmother saw an opportunity.
Emily’s Gagu, her mum’s mum, used her grandkids’ hair to make her own paintbrushes, so when she heard about Emily’s DIY trim, she rushed over to collect the clippings.
Emily’s been surrounded by unique cultures and customs her whole life. She grew up on Groote Eylandt off the coast of the Northern Territory, learning her Gagu’s dreamtime stories on the beach by day, before heading to her Filipino grandmother’s house for karaoke parties at night.
My grandmother spoke six different First Nations languages from all across the NT and her mum before her spoke like 20. To have that language and to be able to perform it and sing it, it's just the greatest honour.Emily Wurramara
Emily joins Lizzy Hoo to share stories of this idyllic island childhood with her Gagu and her Lola, and reflect on the lessons both women passed down about life, art and motherhood.
Coming from these two different cultures and living in this crazy society, I am just so grateful for both my grandmothers my Lola and my Gagu in teaching me how to be a just good human being, and how to treat people like they're human regardless of where they come from, or what they do, or what they're working towards. They always instilled in me that everyone's dreams matter.Emily Wurramara
LISTEN TO
Water baby: Emily Wurramara’s island childhood with her grandmothers, her Lola and Gagu
SBS Audio
11/07/202427:52
Executive Producer: Kellie Riordan
Supervising Producer: Grace Pashley
Producer: Liam Riordan and Luci McAfee
Audio editor and sound designer: Jeremy Wilmot
SBS Audio: Caroline Gates, Joel Supple, and Max Gosford
Artwork by Universal Favourite
We acknowledge Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples as the First Australians and Traditional Custodians of the land on which this show was made.
