Are we really drowning in a sea of grog?
Febfast National Director, Howard Ralley, shares his experience after almost a month without alcohol and questions the value of Australia’s drinking culture as part of our national identity.
Two weeks ago, as I sat reading The Age on the train into work, I read the Australian poet, cartoonist and cultural commentator, Michael Leunig’s poem about the ‘rivers of grog’:
The rivers of grog are deep and wide, they keep the nation well supplied
Canberra, Melbourne, Sydney town; The rivers of grog flow quietly down
Down and down the throats they run. Mother, father, daughter, son
Black and white all stupefied. The rivers of grog are deep and wide.
As I sat on the train, and re-read the poem, I had one of those rare moments when you feel touched by words of wisdom simply told, and I stared out the window not wanting the feeling to pass too quickly. As the national director of febfast – the campaign that challenges everyone to take 28 days off alcohol – I find myself in a slightly strange job where, on a daily basis, I debate, enjoy, question and wonder about the role of alcohol in our society.
But through the course of this work, I’m asked on a regular basis by friends, radio DJs and the odd family member: “so, err, are you a wowser?” The word is thrown out there with a sideways glance and slight hesitant smile. If McCarthyism is the practice of making accusations of disloyalty or treason without proper regard for evidence, then I often feel like a communist in 1950’s America at the very suggestion 28 days alcohol free is a good idea. Self-preservation means I usually shrug it off with a laugh and switch to some personal drinking story of late nights out on the beer.
But increasingly, I’m wondering why the question is asked in the first place. When did we all get so defensive about ‘not drinking’? Is it really un-Australian not to take a beer to a BBQ? Are we truly committing social suicide if we skip the Friday night drinks? And the people asking the question, is there a genuine fear that their right to drink will be taken away by the return of some prohibition Temperance Movement, placards in tow? I have a feeling that the moment a drinker feels threatened by a non-drinker, it’s a wake-up call that we have somehow lost sight of why we’re drinking in the first place.
Febfast is not anti-alcohol, far from it. We’re simply very proud of the fact that febfast has inspired thousands of people to create a circuit breaker from their summer of drinking, and to feel healthier, sharper and ready to kick start the year ahead. I’m even more humbled by the $5million raised to help young kids who have a genuine and serious problem in tackling addiction with alcohol and other drugs.
Even if it’s only in a tiny way, it’s nice to be part of a small dam that’s challenging our river of grog.
Howard Ralley, National Director of febfast, finds himself in a unique position where he now discusses alcohol, every single day. This follows a different career in retail, marketing and travel publishing in London and Melbourne where the consumption of alcohol was more of a daily pursuit. Since joining febfast in Nov 2011 and now having happily survived two febfasts, Howard’s knowledge of everything alcoholic spans the history of the cocktail to the benefits of a month off the booze. Since its creation, and thanks to the amazing support of 30,000 people, febfast has raised over $5m for some incredible young people who are tackling their drug and mental health problems, and inspired over 900,000 hangover free days.
cinerama
March 4, 2013 at 11:08 pm
EDUCATE CHILDREN RE:THE PROBLEMS OF ALCOHOL
Children need to be educated whilst they are still at school regarding the problems of alcohol. I have worked in hospitality in the Sydney Rocks area and would never recommend visitors to go to the area a night. (The same for the Kings Cross/Darlinghurst areas) The drunks falling over,walking in front of traffic and other people is a disgrace. I have seen drunks fall over on top of outside diners in the Rocks area. How many drunken men abuse their wives? This is a major problem in Australia. Men seem to think that you are not a man unless you drink alcohol. However it takes a man to say NO to alcohol. Nobody wants to marry a drunkard. Make the drunks work in hospitals and they can see the problems caused by alcohol. It is one of the biggest causes of health problems. Sydney’s night life seems to involve mostly alcohol. It is no wonder that the city centre will never be a place to visit at night no matter how much the Government wants to revitalise it. One should go to Europe and Asia and see how people can enjoy the night life without the all the brain dead boozers and junkies around from spoiling it for the majority.