![]() ![]() In these thirty-two pieces, spanning states (geographical as well as internal), eras and even continents, something specific and seismic has happened to each author, as they seek to find their place in that mysterious chimera ‘The Great Australian Childhood’. ![]() Our childhood often shapes our ingrained adult aspirations, reactions and fears. It’s no wonder, then, that the combination of powerlessness and having a surfeit of time to reflect on first-time events tattoos these experiences on our memory. And as children we are entirely subject to the decisions of adults – your family might move country, your government might exclude you (or worse, remove you from your family), your teachers might not understand you, your friends might suddenly shun you. We also experience the greatest number of ‘firsts’ during our childhood and adolescence. ![]() When we are children, time moves differently an hour can seem like a day, a week, a month. Perhaps it is a combination of two things that make these experiences so indelible: time and power. ![]() Erik Jensen said that ‘We spend our whole lives trying to work out what happened in the first fourteen years.’ Why are our ‘growing up’ stories so urgent, no matter where or when we live? What is it that makes us dive again and again into this period of our lives? ![]()
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