"Get home before dark or the bunyip will get you!"
"Stay away from the banks of the creek or the bunyip will get you!"
One of the stories my mother particularly enjoyed sharing with me was about the Bunyip, a legendary monster of Australian Aboriginal folklore said to inhabit the reedy swamps and lagoons of the interior of Australia.
During calm nights, she would sit next to me, whispering softly while she described the Bunyip world in vivid detail. “Do you know,” she would start, her eyes twinkling with anticipation, “there’s something quite peculiar about the waters close to the billabong. If you ever find yourself there, you might feel a tingling sense of danger, a whisper of something ancient watching from beneath the surface.”
The stories she shared were filled with vivid details. When she was young, she said she could sense the Bunyip’s watchful eyes under the water. “The creature,” she would mention, “has a reputation for safeguarding the waters and being watchful of those who are not cautious.”
Across our land, the Bunyip can be found in a wide range of waterways. It was rumored to feast on children who ventured too close to the water's edge. Yet, we have gained wisdom from knowing about the bunyip, haven’t we? We steer clear of dams, lakes, and rivers where they might live.
She admitted to never having witnessed a Bunyip by the ocean or knowing of one residing there, and jokingly added, “But I haven’t seen the sea either, so who can say for certain?”
Every tale concluded with her loving yet serious reminder to come home before dark, to avoid catching the attention of the Bunyip.
Spending evenings with my mother not only cultivated my reverence for our land’s legends, but also instilled a careful approach towards nature - a lesson veiled in the tales of the Bunyip.
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