My Girragundji Quotes

The story of a boy who is scared of the bad spirit, the Hairyman, who roams his house at night. But, when he is befriended by a green tree frog, ‘girragundji’, he realizes that his ancestors have sent her to protect him and he can face his fears.

“Anyway, one night the Hairyman -that’s what us mob call those spirits- he grabbed my big sister by the throat. We were al chasing through the house. My big sister, Sue, thought she was gonna scared the rest of us, so she hid in the darkest room and kept real quiet. None of us could find her.”

“I can’t go to sleep. The music’s turned up and the arguments have started. There’s something funny about the night that makes grown-ups go stupid and call each other names. Maybe it’s their way of scaring off the Hairyman. Maybe it’s just the grog in them.”

“The rain poured down in the night. The water’ll be coming up under the house. You’ve got to watch out for snakes this time of year. Chicky, my littlest sister, starts to tease. ‘Sharyn’s got the hots for you, na na nanaa na!’ She races back to the girls’ room.”

“My street is pretty good. I know all the kids. Further on, I still know all the kids, but sometimes they don’t want to know me. Eh, look out! She is here again. That migaloo jaibu, Sharyn. Hanging off her front fence. She’s watching me go past. She’s giving me that smile, that mango-mouth one.”

“Then I hear my dad again: ‘Forget about being fancy. Forget about Michael effin’ What’s-his’face. Mohammed Ali, there’s your man. Never take your eye off the enemy.′ Then I star praying, ‘Please, God, whoever you are, I’m sorry I don’t go to church, or say prayers every night neither, but could you please let me bust up Stacey Straun’s fat face? Just this once? ”

“Plop! Something lands on me. Help! My voice gets stuck. He’s got me. He’s really got me this time. I can feel his hands around my throat. Let go! I go to grab his hands. Get off me! Hang on, they’re my hands. They’re my hands around my neck. You idiot, let go of yourself!”

It’s a tale firmly rooted in aboriginal myth and culture, but one that will appeal to any child who’s been afraid of the dark.

“I know those old people sent her to protect my spirit. They do that sort of thing. She came to me just when I needed her. She stays with me all through the dark nights. I don’t have to worry about squishing her in bed ‘cause she knows which way I’m gonna roll even before I do.”

“A frog! A little, green, tree frog. A beautiful little girragundji. ‘Where did you come from?’ I’m breathing again. I’m gonna live. ‘Where you come from, little fulla?’ Maybe them old people did hear me. Maybe the rain pouring down and the water coming up under our house scared this little one.”