Giinagay Ngujawiny
My name is Jame Telfer,
Kinship connections
I am a proud Gumbaynggirr woman from Yellow Rock, Urunga, custodian of the beautiful Bellingen valley.
My bloodlines run through Gumbaynggirr Country and extend to Anaiwan country, Thungutti country, with Ancestral ties following across the seas to Ireland and Europe. Descendant and grand daughter of Pearl and Harry Kelly — Clara and Alfred Boney. I am the firstborn daughter and granddaughter of my line, a devoted mother of four beautiful children, a loved wife and the embodiment of my Ancestors wildest dreams.
I carry within me the knowledge, strength, creativity and energy of all my Ancestors and Kin. I feel especially blessed to call Harry Kelly my Pop and best friend. One of my earliest and dearest memories is of him drawing his little horse for us kids as he taught us to draw — something he now draws for my own babies, keeping that magic alive. I hold deep gratitude for my Aunty Lisa Kelly, who has lovingly passed down our Gumbaynggirr markings and symbols. The deepest gratitude to this land, my land, animal and plant king — for the deep remembering and their gracious sharing of knowledge.
I am always co-creating with the ones who came before me, the ones still walking beside me, and the ones who have come through me. My path is shaped by Country, Spirit, and kinship — rooted in Ancestral wisdom and relationship.
Acknowledgment of knowledge
I am a qualified Aromatherapist, but truthfully am forever learning my most valuable knowledge from the plants themselves. I am a qualified Reiki practitioner but truthfully am constantly learning and moving more so from my own energy, intuition and connections to my Ancestors than anything else. I studied art in high school, and have done many classes and workshops over the years but truthfully I have learn far more from my family and lived experiences then I could ever be taught. I have spent a life time of knowledge seeking in a western world but the stillness brought me the truth that my most valuable knowledge was all around me and didn’t have to be forced, sought out or paid for. I am in gratitude for the opportunities and learning experiences and teacher I have had over the years but none as grateful for the Kinship teachers that I have had of my lineage and land.
I would like to acknowledge and honour the teachers in my life that have directly and in directly provided me with the wealthy knowledge bank I have. I am forever grateful for those that have shared their knowledge with me be it through teaching practices, in passing or through relationship — for those of my land, lineage, kin and those who I have also had the pleasure to walk beside.