Meryl Swanson, Canberra Matters column, Cessnock Advertiser
I am privileged in my role as Federal Member for Paterson to be part of formal Australia Day celebrations.
What delights me about these occasions is the enjoyment we show in coming together, in welcoming newcomers, and in celebrating our achievements.
It's the joy that young and old express as we wave our flags.
We welcome new citizens, we watch honours bestowed on those who have given great service to our country, and we celebrate the peace and freedom we all enjoy.
Australia has a long history of migration - beginning with the First Fleet, whose raising of the flag of Great Britain in Sydney Cove in 1788 is the reason we gather on Australia Day every year.
Before that, our country had an incredible 60,000 years of Indigenous history, with many nations of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples.
It behoves us all, on Australia Day, to spend time reflecting on the whole history of Australia and acknowledging that the arrival of the First Fleet is experienced by some of our First Nations peoples with difficulty and pain.
Our country has been built on the combined contributions of our Indigenous people and those who came later from all over the world.
We celebrate this diversity and at the same time we strive to be a unified and harmonious nation.
We work together to solve problems. We have stable government and respect the rule of law.
We are free and democratic. We live peacefully and have compassion for those in need. We embody mateship, and a fair go.
In Australia we do not always agree. But we respect each other's differences and choices, and we speak out against those who would deny those rights.
While COVID-19 may again have impacted some of our celebrations, those of us who are able to gather on Australia Day will give thanks for this great country.
Especially as we continue to battle the pandemic, let us look after each other, let us lift each other up.
On Australia Day of all days let us remember that what divides us is less important than what unites us.
Wherever we came from, we are all here now.
