NOWRA musical icon Jimmy Little has been given a new honour, being one of only three prominent Australians included in a new book aimed at passing on wisdom to succeeding generations.
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The book Wisdom by Andrew Zuckerman features 50 prominent people from all over the world, all aged over 65, passing on key lessons they have learnt during their travels through life.
Publisher Hachette described the subjects as “50 of the world’s most prominent over 65-year-olds.”
The list of international luminaries and “the world’s most exceptional, inspirational people” includes only three Australians – former Prime Minister Malcolm Fraser, best selling author Bryce Courtenay, and Mr Little who grew up in Nowra and attended school at Terara.
During his interview for the book, Mr Little spoke of the importance of manners and showing respect for other people.
“My dad told me ‘son, there are three words that will open any door: the door of a building, the door of the mind, the door of the heart, any door you like.
‘Three words, don’t forget, always use them. Thank you and please. That’s your calling card’.
“So we learnt to respect the land and each other, and respect what a person can share and give,” Mr Little said.
Dubbed the father of reconciliation in Australia for his work teaching and mentoring Aboriginal people, Mr Little also spoke of learning his people’s traditions and “this wonderful oral history” as a child.
“It was kind of bred naturally,” he said.
“You’d go to camps, like the other neighbours who were all camping in one big area, and everybody acted the same and did the same: so there was a similarity right across the board of respect, grace and faith.
“All of this amounted to wisdom to us,” Mr Little said.
“The children were taken by the mothers and the fathers in different paths of learning – this is what you eat, this is the bush medicine, this is the bush tucker, and this is a no-no; all those things were so natural that we just didn’t question it, we just went along with it.”
But the teaching was not just about Aboriginal traditions and practices.
“In my case my mum and dad and their parents gave us signs that we wouldn’t need all the indigenous Aboriginal teaching, because we were moving into another era, another lifestyle, another dimension.
“So we have to have room to do a translation, to transfer the skills into modern living, because they knew from their wisdom that we were going to grow up in a multicultural environment and not just an Aboriginal environment,” Mr Little said.
He also spoke of his long musical career in the book, which was in heavy demand in the lead-up to Christmas.
