Who am I?
Who do you think I am?
Am I the Tom Boy who grew up in the suburbs of Melbourne, Australia with my four brothers?
Some say: “You are what you eat”. Well I was a vegetarian for two years.
the clothes I wear?
the place I live?
Am I the foreigner who grew up a child of “New Australians” from Czechoslovakia, in Melbourne, travelled around the world, met my husband in New York and ended up a “foreigner” in Austria?
Am I the company I keep?
Well, some of the
1. People I’ve met –
Queen Silvia of Sweden, (I shook hands with her last year) Queen Elisabeth of England – I met her in Adelaide, Ban Ki Moon – I took his photo at the Town Hall meeting last year, Antonio Maria Costa, Mother Teresa, Dalai Lama, Josef Pröll, Yukiya Amano
Or Am I
2. Places I’ve been:
Australia, Melbourne, Sydney, Hobart, Brisbane, Adelaide, Cairns, Cooktown, Tasmania. Switzerland, Czechoslovakia, Czech Republic, Slovakia, Germany, Norway – I saw the midnight sun in Narvik, Sweden, Denmark, Turkey, Greece, Yugoslavia, England, New Zealand, America, France, Korea, Netherlands, Slovenia
3. Organisations that I have been a member of
YMCA, Czech folk dancing group, Youth Hostels Association, Unification Church, Women’s Federation for World Peace, NGO Committee on Narcotic Drugs, NGO Peace Committee, NGO Committee on the Status of Women, The Young Political Party in Australia, The Red Cross, Family Forum, Toastmasters
Or am I 4. My family:
My Austrian husband, my five Austrian sons who all became Vienna Choir boys
Or My family of Origin
Czech parents, Sudeten-German Grandfather, Father from Prague, Mother from Brno
6. Jobs I have had
office clerk, laboratory assistant, nursing assistant, housemaid/waitress, Student nurse, company manager, Secretary, Sales person, Bookkeeper/accountant, Volunteer, Office worker in the home office, The foreign correspondent for the mail order company, Organisations Assistant for an educational institute, English trainer, International Secretary, Office manager, Communications Trainer,
7. Organisations I have worked for
8. Things I’ve done, the places I’ve been. People I’ve met
Unpaid work I do:
Mother, carer, good listener, Counsellor, advisor, nurse, personal assistant, secretary, finance minister, gardener, vet, farmer, taxi driver, home manager
9. Things I’ve done
Caught fish, ridden a horse bareback, climbed Ayers rock, Hitch hiked around New Zealand, addressed the CTBTO conference as NGO representative, managed household at 17, got ECDL Advanced, bought myself a Mac, school debating team, school hockey team, school volleyball team
Who am I? I was christened Lydia Aniela Skruzny and was always called Lilly. I am adventurous and have a unique laugh. I am honest, sincere and an incurable optimist and idealist. In Switzerland they called me “Fraulein Lilly”. In Australia I was Lilly Skruzny, in primary school: Lydia Skruzny, in America Lilly Gundacker.
Tell me who you think I am.
Mr Toastmaster
The above was my “Ice-breaker” at my maiden speech for the VIC Toastmasters Club.