I'll see you here again in about a week. Thanks for your interest and support.
HCM
I’ve been writing a weekly column for the Fairfax press since
2009 and now it is time to say goodbye. In that time, we have said good bye to 6
Prime Ministers and 8 great Fairfax editors.
“Neither job seems long term” says Louise.
It’s now around 400 columns since I started and I’m grateful
to the people who stop me in the street to say that they read the columns every
week. They know me through these words and it still surprises me that someone
who didn’t finish high school, can engage with so many Australians in this way.
But it’s simple really. I worked out early on that most
Australians are interested in stories, especially stories that are similar to
their own. I’ve always been fascinated by the stories that people have to tell,
and the real story of this column and its longevity is that I listened to you.
Not enough of that is happening right now. Many of our
leaders in almost every sector of human endeavour seem to have just stopped listening,
even when they claim to be doing just that. I doubt they’d last 400 columns.
You might remember the story of Blaga, the 91-year-old
Macedonian immigrant. A brilliant woman who could speak 6 languages and still
not be properly heard by the hospital system in Western Melbourne.
And the funny stories like the one about Gough Whitlam and
the motorised chair we put him to tour the National Gallery of Australia in
Canberra when I was its Chairman. He took off in it to look at his beloved Blue
Poles but lost control as he neared the $200 million masterpiece. Only a diving
Gallery guard saved us from a national catastrophe.
And there has been the ongoing stories about our new
migrants, particularly the experiences of our North African kids which were
told to me by the kids themselves. I’m proud to know that my columns were
retransmitted to their community to give them a feeling that someone was
listening.
Last week I talked about the battle we have in listening to
and learning from new powers in a new world that includes China. We have to be
able to get better at knowing the difference between the acceptance of a new
reality and the endorsement of it.
But as they say, the more things change, the more they stay
the same, and the wisdom of the older generations, like the timeless advice of
my dear old Dad who featured in this column so often, remains a steadying
influence if we are prepared to listen.
He, like almost everyone I know, just wanted to leave a
better world for our grandkids.
And now to say thank you. Thanks to Charlie, our very clever
economist, who picked many changes in the world’s economy ahead of most others.
He helped me make a bob or two and pass on plenty of wisdom to you. And thanks
to Louise who always puts people first. No one can fool Louise by saying “Don’t
you know who I am?” If you’re not helping others she just isn’t interested.
And let’s not forget the brilliant Cathy Wilcox whose
cartoons have accompanied these words every week. Cathy has an extraordinary
ability to get to the heart of the matter with wit and warmth.
I am fortunate to have been born an Australian. This a great
country, but we have more to do. I deplore the politics of division that is
undermining imaginative leadership at the moment.
But we will emerge from this period if ordinary people like
you and me speak out. I’ve been fortunate to be able to speak out for you on
these pages and I’ll keep doing so into the future with a regular blog https://hmitchellac.blogspot.com/.
Drop by and say hello.
Thank you for your interest and your stories over the last 9
years. I couldn't have done it without you.
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