Australian Lithuanian vignettes

For thousands of years, history was seen as the story of kings and aristocrats, their wars, victories and defeats. We know little about what life was like for ordinary people then. Even if fragments of such knowledge survive, ordinary life is seen through the perspective of others. Imagine if our lives today were told only through the prism of presidents, ministers or academics. Would future people get a true impression of our lives from reading such a description?

The Australian Lithuanian community is no different. So much written material that comes to the Archive from our community centres around official matters like reports from boards and committees of various organisations, minutes of meetings, and official letters. Yes, all these documents tell the story of our community, but only the official side. What was daily life like? What did people do and feel in their ordinary lives? Would you not like to preserve real life for future generations?

Members of the Australian Lithuanian community were asked to tell their own stories. Our team wanted funny, weird, delightful or interesting stories from a wide range of people, with a Lithuanian flavour, of course. It may have been an interaction with others, an event, an incident of note that has remained in family- or community-lore and still evokes strong memories. This would provide shades of grey, colour and the infinite variety that makes a community. 

This book, ‘Australian Lithuanian Vignettes’, with more than 65 stories, is the result. You will read about the sword swallower, the Lithuanian-inspired strike in Canberra, the journey of a doll from a DP camp to Australia via USA, life in the jungle, the family calmly and methodically going about their business in their own garden only to be censured by a snippy neighbour, and many many more. We are very grateful to those who have been willing to share their stories with us. Some are funny, some are sad, some are unbelievable, some are heartbreaking – the same as our lives. We hope you enjoy our book.

Birutė Beal, Edita Meškauskaitė and Daina Pocius

You can purchase the book through the link to the Archive shop or from the Australian Lithuanian Archive facebook page.