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Authors: Sally Rippin
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Lina heard Mary say in a cool voice. âLooks like youâve got a new best friend, Sarah?â
Lina heard Sarah snigger. Her stomach dropped and she listened closer.
âWho, Lina ?â Sarah said. âAre you kidding? Just because weâre working on the magazine together doesnât mean weâre friends, Mary. Sheâs a wog! How can I be friends with a wog ? Could you imagine what my father would say?â
Lina felt her body turn to ice. She heard Sarahâs locker slam shut and quickly ran back into the courtyard before they could discover her behind the wall. Blossom whirled around her feet as she ran and tears pricked the corners of her eyes. I wonât cry! she told herself angrily. I wonât! I wonât let those horrible girls make me feel bad ever again.
Lina reached the bench underneath the old jacaranda and sat down heavily. She had never felt so alone. I donât know which is harder, she thought, her heart almost breaking in two. To know that my once-best-friend is now my enemy or to have almost mistaken my enemy for a friend.
My parents are from Adelaide. Soon after they married, my fatherâs job took them to Darwin, where I was born. Throughout my childhood we moved country almost every two years, but my parents made sure they came back to Australia for the birth of my two younger sisters. It was very important to them that despite having spent much of our childhood overseas, we were still able to call ourselves Australian.
Since then, Iâve spent most of my adult life in Melbourne and my three sons were born here. Even though my older boys are half-French and my youngest is half-Italian, they consider themselves Australian. Not so much the blond-haired, surf-boarding Australian that we often see on postcards, but more a product of the rich multicultural mix that makes up this big country. To me, that is the Australian Girl I most identify with.
I was born and grew up in Italy, a beautiful country to visit, but also a difficult country to live in for new generations.
In 2006, I packed up my suitcase and I left Italy with the man I love. We bet on Australia. I didnât know much about Australia before coming â I was just looking for new opportunities, I guess.
And I liked it right from the beginning! Australian people are resourceful, open-minded and always with a smile on their faces. I think all Australians keep in their blood a bit of the pioneer heritage, regardless of their own birthplace.
Here I began a new life and now Iâm doing what I always dreamed of: I illustrate stories. Here is the place where Iâd like to live and to grow up my children, in a country that doesnât fear the future.
T HE Melbourne Olympics was the first Games ever to be held in the southern hemisphere, and before it began, some people were a bit uncertain about how it would go.
They were worried about having the event so far from Europe and the United States, and in a country that had the opposite seasons from what many athletes were used to. The Games was held in late November, which would usually be wintertime for people in the northern hemisphere. On the other side of the world, Russia had invaded Hungary, which caused the Netherlands, Spain and Switzerland to boycott the Olympics in protest. Israel had also invaded Egypt, which caused lots of tension around the world.
But despite these doubts and worries, the Melbourne Olympics was a big success! It became known as the Friendly Games because of the relaxed atmosphere and feelings of goodwill. Lots of our athletes performed brilliantly on their home soil, and we came third in the overall medal tally, behind the Soviet Union and the United States.
One of the most memorable things about the Games, though, was the waterpolo game between Russia and Hungary. It became known as the âBlood in the Waterâ match because of all the fighting and injuries.
But by the end of the Games, people realised more
Lina heard Sarah snigger. Her stomach dropped and she listened closer.
âWho, Lina ?â Sarah said. âAre you kidding? Just because weâre working on the magazine together doesnât mean weâre friends, Mary. Sheâs a wog! How can I be friends with a wog ? Could you imagine what my father would say?â
Lina felt her body turn to ice. She heard Sarahâs locker slam shut and quickly ran back into the courtyard before they could discover her behind the wall. Blossom whirled around her feet as she ran and tears pricked the corners of her eyes. I wonât cry! she told herself angrily. I wonât! I wonât let those horrible girls make me feel bad ever again.
Lina reached the bench underneath the old jacaranda and sat down heavily. She had never felt so alone. I donât know which is harder, she thought, her heart almost breaking in two. To know that my once-best-friend is now my enemy or to have almost mistaken my enemy for a friend.
My parents are from Adelaide. Soon after they married, my fatherâs job took them to Darwin, where I was born. Throughout my childhood we moved country almost every two years, but my parents made sure they came back to Australia for the birth of my two younger sisters. It was very important to them that despite having spent much of our childhood overseas, we were still able to call ourselves Australian.
Since then, Iâve spent most of my adult life in Melbourne and my three sons were born here. Even though my older boys are half-French and my youngest is half-Italian, they consider themselves Australian. Not so much the blond-haired, surf-boarding Australian that we often see on postcards, but more a product of the rich multicultural mix that makes up this big country. To me, that is the Australian Girl I most identify with.
I was born and grew up in Italy, a beautiful country to visit, but also a difficult country to live in for new generations.
In 2006, I packed up my suitcase and I left Italy with the man I love. We bet on Australia. I didnât know much about Australia before coming â I was just looking for new opportunities, I guess.
And I liked it right from the beginning! Australian people are resourceful, open-minded and always with a smile on their faces. I think all Australians keep in their blood a bit of the pioneer heritage, regardless of their own birthplace.
Here I began a new life and now Iâm doing what I always dreamed of: I illustrate stories. Here is the place where Iâd like to live and to grow up my children, in a country that doesnât fear the future.
T HE Melbourne Olympics was the first Games ever to be held in the southern hemisphere, and before it began, some people were a bit uncertain about how it would go.
They were worried about having the event so far from Europe and the United States, and in a country that had the opposite seasons from what many athletes were used to. The Games was held in late November, which would usually be wintertime for people in the northern hemisphere. On the other side of the world, Russia had invaded Hungary, which caused the Netherlands, Spain and Switzerland to boycott the Olympics in protest. Israel had also invaded Egypt, which caused lots of tension around the world.
But despite these doubts and worries, the Melbourne Olympics was a big success! It became known as the Friendly Games because of the relaxed atmosphere and feelings of goodwill. Lots of our athletes performed brilliantly on their home soil, and we came third in the overall medal tally, behind the Soviet Union and the United States.
One of the most memorable things about the Games, though, was the waterpolo game between Russia and Hungary. It became known as the âBlood in the Waterâ match because of all the fighting and injuries.
But by the end of the Games, people realised more
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