Summary

Baby blanket belonging to Bul Ayuel Bulkoch, a Sudanese refugee who migrated to Australia at the age of 13 in 1996. It was purchased for him by his mother Yar Garang Deng when he was a baby in 1983. She kept it throughout the family's years of relocation in a small suitcase with her husband's qualifications and certificates and whenever they had to flee: her priority was always to keep these possessions safe.

Yar reflected in 2018: "I love my son with that blanket. This one, I can't leave it. I look Bul, I looked at that blanket because that blanket I say that God put it through my blood. I carry my family. I knew my kid. One day they told me, 'Mum, why you carry the blanket?' I tell Bul, 'I love you. That's why I carry this one. Blanket and Bul number one for me. Even I die, OK, I lived my history with that blanket because not blanket, this is the Bul love.'"

Her son Bul reflected in 2018: "I remember the pattern, the colour, the texture, the fabric, every bit of it. I could never forget it. It's just something that has been ingrained you know as part of my childhood memory...As we moved around from one refugee camp to another you know we lost a lot of our possessions and that was one thing that she held on to. I think she wanted to remind me you know that I came from somewhere better, not to despair over the circumstance or the situation we were in, and to always hope that there will be a better day...It's a reminder of the love that she had I guess for her child. There's always going to be that strong bond between us."

Bul Bulkoch was born in southern Sudan in 1983 in the same year the war in Sudan began. Bul and his family fled Sudan, trekking through Ethiopia, back to Sudan and finally to Kenya, residing in refugee camps until finally successfully gaining acceptance to Australia as refugees. Bul was 13 when he arrived in Australia in 1996 with his parents, younger sister and brothers. When he arrived at Melbourne International Airport, he had only the clothes he was wearing. As an Australian teenager, Bul played basketball, made many friends, and completed his secondary education at Footscray City College. He went on to complete his university engineering degree and now works in Western Australia as a mining engineer and planner.

Physical Description

Cotton woven baby's blanket, orange and white geometric patterns with white fringing down two sides and orange fringing down two sides.

More Information