I’m very humbled to have been interviewed by Simon Reeve in this short doco-style interview.
The Colours of Australia.
A young woman dances in the hills outside Beirut in Lebanon, the country of her birth. A moment’s interlude from trauma and chaos.
It is 1979. Civil war had been tearing Lebanon apart for 4 years. It would rage until 1990, costing the lives of 100,000 people.
Her name is Chadia.
Her Mum severely injured by shrapnel after a bomb explosion, her sister shot in the leg by a neighbourhood sniper.
The war impacted everyone.
In a year or so, Chadia would flee, finding her way to Houston, Texas, working several jobs, hoping for permanent citizenship. However, an abusive marriage forced another big move, this time to Australia. She would soon fall in love in Brisbane with Martin Chalmers, who’d left Zimbabwe, another country beset by upheaval and trauma. That was 1986.
They are still happily together, working in their own business, Chadia Chalmers Realty, with 2 great children, on the Gold Coast.
Chadia has written a wonderful book, Cyclamen, a story of resilience, perseverance and hope.
She represents all the things I love about our marvellous multicultural mix here in Australia.
An interview compiled over 2 chats, with a wardrobe change in between!
