It's a good distraction.

Creaming butter and sugar is a soothing ritual.

My daughter insists on breaking the eggs, adding them to the wet ingredients, one at a time.

Then she disappears, as fast as the egg yolks themselves.

While the cake bakes in the oven there is a tennis smorgasbord on the TV every year at this time.

The Australian Open always offers comfort and joy even after a rocky start to the tournament this year.

Then I fall into bed and dream that one day soon we'll wake up to the fact that Australia Day is still being celebrated on the wrong date.

You don't even need to be a history scholar to know it.

Sadly, January 26 is a divisive day on our country's calendar.

I've written before about not being a fan of Australia Day being celebrated on this date; ad nauseam, in fact.

I wake up uneasy on January 26.

For our First Nations people, it must make their stomachs churn.

On the date we claimed their ancient land as our very own, we party without a worry in the world.

We're all boats and floats and booze and barbecues and flags descended from the British.

All of this would be above board on a different date, which is not so insensitive to our indigenous history.

On Australia Day 84 years ago, First Nations leaders held the first Day of Mourning marking 150 years of colonisation and the birth of the contemporary civil rights movement for Aboriginal people.

While some progress has been made over that time, our country's record on indigenous health, education and incarceration still lags well behind.

In fact, there have been 500 indigenous deaths in custody since the 1987-1991 Royal Commission into Aboriginal Deaths in Custody.

IN OTHER NEWS:

This Australia Day marks the 50th anniversary of the Aboriginal Tent Embassy - the longest continuing protest site anywhere in the world.

On January 26, 1972, Michael Anderson, Billy Craigie, Bertie Williams and Tony Coorey planted a beach umbrella outside of what is now known as Old Parliament House, proclaiming it the Aboriginal Embassy.

The embassy was established in response to the McMahon Coalition government's refusal to recognise Aboriginal land rights or native title in Australia.

Instead Mr McMahon favoured a new general-purpose lease for Aboriginal people which would be conditional on their "intention and ability to make reasonable economic and social use of land", while reserving for the Crown rights to minerals and forestry.

What began as a stand for land rights and opposition to government policy of assimilation, quickly transformed into the site and symbol of the ongoing resistance to colonial rule - an assertion of the unshakable right to practice and protect country, culture and self-determination.

Every year Australia inches closer to reconciliation at a painfully slow pace.

This year the Commonwealth won copyright for the free use of the Aboriginal flag

Artist Harold Thomas designed the flag in 1970 and says it should be flown unaltered, proudly and without restriction.

Mr Thomas will retain moral rights over the flag but gave up copyright in return for all future royalties the Commonwealth gets from commercial flag sales to be put towards NAIDOC's work.

Meanwhile, we continue to celebrate Australia Day on January 26, shrouded in barbecues, booze, boats and floats.

Unlike baking, some rituals don't feel very soothing.

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