Miranda Tapsell's grandmother was born under a tree outside Darwin High School. At that point in time, that plot of land was a meat works. It was while working at the attoir nat Tapsell's heavily pregnant great-grandmother went into labour. She gave birth to her daughter there and then, under the shade of the tree that still stands today. In June, Tapsell plans to take her baby daughter, Grace, to her ancestral land to introduce her to her extended family, immerse her in their culture, and show her the tree outside Darwin High.
The 34-year-old Sydney-based actor grew up in Jabiru in Kakadu National Park, where her mum, Barbara, worked at the local school and her dad, Tony, was the town clerk. It will be something of a homecoming for Tapsell. “My mum's history is embedded in Darwin and I'm so excited for Grace to have a sense of that,” she tells marie claire. "I hope she falls in love with the place and draws strength from it, like I have.”
In October last year, Barbara and Tony left the thick humidity of Darwin for Sydney, ahead of the arrival of their first grandchild. They brought the spirit of the tropics with them, though, and gifted it to their granddaughter Grace, who was born in November. Barbara gave her the middle name Birri-Pa, which means butterfly in Larrakia, and her great-grandmothers on the Tiwi Islands gifted her Purnarrika, which means water lily. What's in a name? For Tapsell's first born it's character, soul and the power of the world's oldest living culture. “I wanted my daughter to have a strong understanding of who she is, who her mother and grandmother are and where her family comes from. When she goes to school, she'll be excited to share her name; she can shout from the rooftops that she's a little Aboriginal girl and no-one will be able to question her Aboriginality. No-one my daughter's name away from her," says Tapsell proudly.
Bu hikaye Marie Claire Australia dergisinin May 2022 sayısından alınmıştır.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 8,500+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber ? Giriş Yap
Bu hikaye Marie Claire Australia dergisinin May 2022 sayısından alınmıştır.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 8,500+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber? Giriş Yap
WHY WOMEN SHOULDN'T BE DISCOUNTED
Four game-changing women share why they want economic empowerment included in the conversation this International Women’s Day
home HAVEN
Sophie Bell, founder of Peppa Hart, invites us into her calming quarters, writes Samantha Stewart
BEHIND THE SCENES with PETER PHILIPS
An intimate backstage moment with the legendary creative and image director for Dior Makeup
MIAH MADDEN
The Australian actor on her biggest fashion crime, party tricks and the women who have shaped her
TAYLOR SWIFT
As she hits our shores in February, music writer Cameron Adams charts the unbelievable career of the world’s biggest music artist, from her Nashville country music roots to her record-smashing Eras tour
The road to NIRVANA
Editor Georgie Abay lands in the remote Himalayan kingdom of Bhutan for the adventure of a lifetime
makes SUN sense
What if we saw a suntan for what it really is: a visible sign that skin has been damaged? Sherine Youssef looks behind the golden facade
RUNWAY to DEBT
Modelling agencies are ecruiting young people who have fled war-torn African countries and are living in extreme poverty. They are flown to Europe to take part n fashion castings, but some return within days or weeks, often laden with debt
CALLUM TURNER
The British actor shares tales from the front line, why you should play your heroes and his love for Free Willy
ALL ABOUT JESS
Chart-topping Australian singer Jessica Mauboy talks love, lonliness and music legend Whitney Houston on the eve of her new release, Yours Forever