The sound of ringing clapsticks and the scent of smouldering eucalyptus floated through a sunny North Queensland afternoon, bringing with it the start of a new chapter in Cairns.
Members of 51st Battalion, Far North Queensland Regiment (51FNQR) celebrated the opening of a new yarning circle at Porton Barracks with a smoking ceremony on July 16.
It was conducted by local Indigenous man Jiritju Fourmile, whose family has ties with the Yarrabah and Cairns area, including a number of soldiers in the battalion.
51FNQR Commanding Officer Lieutenant Colonel Jeremy Schieb said with more than 200 Indigenous soldiers in his unit, the circle would be a focal point, especially for new recruits.
"We have a diverse workforce, and one of the important parts of the cultural melting pot that is the battalion is the opportunity for everyone to sit down and have a yarn," Lieutenant Colonel Schieb said.
"Having a yarning circle of our own, here on Porton, gives us a culturally appropriate space where we can work through issues and mix all of our cultural perspectives together."
51FNQR soldiers constructed a permanent yarning circle during NAIDOC week with the help of 19 Indigenous recruits who were on the barracks in preparation for basic training.
Stumps from paperbark trees which had been felled on the barracks earlier, were used for seats around the circle.
Paperbark trees are important to the local Indigenous people, used for making shelters and for medicinal purposes.
The unit plans to have prominent Gimuy-Walubara elder Uncle Henrik Fourmile complete a tree carving near the circle, the traditional way of preserving and passing down stories.
