Three Countries, Three Languages, One Remarkable Life : Claudia in Conversation with Her Mum

In one of her most personal episodes yet, Claudia Callisto finally welcomes a very special guest into the studio, her mother, Luisa Di Martino.From an Italian childhood and a large family of 11 siblings, to growing up in Belgium, marrying young, migrating to Australia, raising four daughters and building a career of her own, Luisa shares the experiences that shaped not only her life but the generations that followed.It is a warm, funny and deeply moving conversation about migration, identity, motherhood, opportunity, ageing and the stories our mothers carry with them. It is a conversation Claudia has wanted to record for a long time, not simply for the podcast, but to preserve a family story and create a lasting record for future generations.Born in the province of Caserta in southern Italy, Luisa moved to Belgium with her family at just six years old after her father found work in the coal mines. Growing up as one of 11 children, she experienced a household shaped by Italian traditions while receiving her education in French. She reflects on the expectations placed on young women, meeting Claudia's father as a teenager, marrying at just 16 and building an independent working life in Belgium.Luisa then shares the decision that changed the direction of her entire family. Rather than returning with her husband and young daughters to a small Italian village where she believed opportunities would be limited, she investigated another possibility: Australia. With family already living in South Australia, Luisa and her husband migrated and began again. What followed was a life of raising four daughters, learning English to a professional standard, returning to work, serving in the public sector and eventually undertaking interpreting studies so she could assist Italian-speaking people.But this episode is about much more than migration. Claudia and Luisa laugh about family dinners, cooking, strict Italian fathers, daughters finding clever ways to get permission to go out, homemade school uniforms, gardening, preserving vegetables, grandchildren and even Claudia's unexpected birth at home. As the conversation draws to a close, the story becomes especially poignant. At 84, Luisa reflects with pride on the life she created, while Claudia speaks about why preserving her mother's voice and memories matters so much. It is an episode about where we come from, what our parents sacrificed and the extraordinary impact one woman's choices can have across generations.Brought to you by Shining Light