Video Transcription
Looking after mob: Mia talks about obligations
The cultural expectation as an Indigenous person is that you look after your mob.
Hi, I’m Mia McManaman. I’m Kaurna Aranga, and I am from Adela, now living in Sydney. So, I’m a beach baby, and so’s my mob.
My experience at the end of Year 12 was a bit rough. My mum was talking a lot about her health. She was diagnosed with stage three breast cancer. Literally, the end of Year 12, when exams and everything were happening, was when she was actually diagnosed. It altered a lot of what I got to do.
I struggled getting out throughout high school. I was kind of looking after my little brother at the time. I was the sister that had to do our laundry, and I was the sister that had to make dinners, and I was the sister that had to yell at him to clean his room. Basically, I felt like a teen mom at the time, really.
My dad worked night shifts, which is why I was primarily taking Jacks to and from school. I was just really struggling with guilt. Mia, you need to—you need to help out more. And I felt like I was already doing so much of looking after Mum.
I got a lot of support from my friends. I almost felt seen because I didn’t really get seen a lot at home. Even my little brother at the time—I think he was only 10—and we would kind of discuss things together. It really put in perspective that I wasn’t the only one feeling unseen because, unfortunately, yeah, Mum had her own worries. Mothering wasn’t the primary job; it was for her to get better.
I definitely had a few kind of ways to deal with the impact, music being one. I had a playlist for every single mood I was feeling. I had a sad playlist. I had a crying-sad playlist. I had a heartbreak playlist. And then I also had my happier playlist.
I found that almost whenever I was in these really dark stages or dark depressions—if I’d just had an argument with my family, if I’d just locked myself in my room—I’d put on the headphones and just listen to music.
The secondary thing is I have an English Staffy called Felicia. My dog was quite literally my best friend. So, dog walking was great. I loved going on runs. Physical activity and my playlist really helped me get through that stage.
[Music]
