Love at great distance

 

When I think about my family and how they have supported me over the last two years, I think about how hard they’ve worked to take care of me from so far away. From video calls and check-in texts to containers of homemade food shipped to me in little brown parcels, I have felt their love even from such great distances.

This piece celebrates the constancy of my support system, my community, and my loved ones. Amidst the chaos and isolation, we have provided each other with home comforts and safety. If we have been “hard to reach,” it is a difficulty that I have fortunately been spared.


This No Compass edition is supported by Multicultural Arts Victoria, as a part of the 2022 Ahead of the Curve Commissions.

Raina Shauki

Author: Raina Shauki

Raina is a first-generation Indonesian migrant who arrived in Australia at the age of four. Like many of those who grew up straddled between different cultures, she has spent much of her life navigating the world with a dual sense of identity, and an understanding of the way migrant communities endure despite all odds. This experience is at the core of her work, and motivates her to bring an intersectional lens to her role at the anti-street harassment organisation, ‘It’s Not A Compliment.Raina is in the final year of her Master’s degree at the University of Melbourne and hopes to use her experience to contribute to the fight against injustice and inequality.

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