A Resilient Life

Mariam Issa as a child dreamt of travelling to faraway places. She did not dream she would need to flee Somalia’s civil war on a leaky overcrowded boat to Kenya - pregnant and holding her two young sons for dear life. Nor did she dream of the horrors of bombings, or her close knit family being torn apart and spread to different countries, including Australia where she now resides. Mariam’s story is one of overcoming limitations. In spite of the difficulties that face her due to her gender and circumstance, Mariam gains an education in Africa, and overcomes vast cultural differences to integrate in Australia by seeking opportunity to learn from a diversity of local women who combine careers, motherhood and community contribution.