Every country has its major trauma or traumata, and to gain the full benefit of constellation work it is essential that we work with this in mind. Some countries had major wars even a long time ago, and in constellations, if one wants to find the time where some trauma originated, one just has to go back far enough until one comes to it. When we allow this to come into the space of the soul, when we face the larger picture, we realize how all of our so called personal issues are really just facets of the greater fate that we are part of and are given certain aspects to experience and to bring to some healing where possible.
Most places have experienced war at some time, and very many, unfortunately, outright genocide.

We may be connected to perpetrators through our family, or to victims, or to both. In any case, we can make a contribution to reconciliation if we wish.

Wherever some individual, group or nation has something at the expense of others, even at the cost of the  lives of the owners by traditional or conventional law, a big price will be paid for generations to come. The offspring of the perpetrators will often try to atone, even by offering, and taking, their lives, at least their sanity, their health, their happiness.

When the guilty ones are not brought to justice, and more importantly, do not feel pain about the pain they caused, others will have to carry the pain.

How this applies to Australia, is quite clear, even in theory. The extent and the tragedy of it we have experienced in constellations, to quite a shocking extent.

Many years ago, working in a women's shelter, I remember the painful time where we realized we had to ask the women if they or their children has been sexually abused. Many then spoke about it for the first time.

We find the same in constellations now. We ask questions (away from the group) about the contact with the rightful original inhabitants of this continent. And reactions follow, of at least equal strength as happened in the disclosure of sexual abuse . May be fierce denial, silence, emotional outbursts, acute distress, running out of the room, to list a few. But the door to a dark secret has been shown, and those who want to, may open it, and will find support and togetherness in approaching it and going through the gate. It takes courage, but it may be the beginning of the end of an inner imprisonment.

Just as in sexual abuse, where we did not want to know how widespread it is, so in this tragedy, it is shocking to open one's eyes to how widespread the the ongoing effects are. We can see that in the indigenous people, but non indigenous people have perhaps often not realized that in their families people have paid and still are paying high prices to atone for the actions of their forefathers.

Our motive to care about deep reconciliation is of course, most directly, our  hearts aching about the suffering caused.  It is also very touching to see how people, even on a subconscious level, show the unbearable pain about the murders, direct and indirect, that family members of theirs committed, generally in earlier generations.

I hope we can be brave and face this large national problem in little bits at a time in our work. To me, it means, being real in Australia, or being really in Australia, in what is unique to this big island.

At our New Guinea friend's wedding the exchange of vows included: "And your people will be my people too, and my people will be your people, too."