When they were around 11 years old, both my two older brothers were taken by the…
When they were around 11 years old, both my two older brothers were taken by the military into the child soldier program in South Sudan. That happened before I was even born, so I never knew them. My memories of growing up are of war, and constantly moving. Whenever...
I was born in the Democratic Republic of Congo, which was at war for much of m…
I was born in the Democratic Republic of Congo, which was at war for much of my life. When I was 21, my parents and siblings and I took refuge in Kenya at the refugee camp in Kakuma, the biggest camp in Africa. Life was not easy there. Access to food, education and...
I’m from a small village in Malta. It was a great place to grow up. There woul…
I’m from a small village in Malta. It was a great place to grow up. There would often be around 60 kids of all ages playing games like hide and seek, soccer or chasey together. In summer, we’d stay up playing until two in the morning! All the women would be playing...
In the civil war in El Salvador, my parents would often hear gunshots, sirens, a…
In the civil war in El Salvador, my parents would often hear gunshots, sirens, and bombs going off all night and see dead bodies on the side of the road the next day. One night, my father had a gun pointed to his head by the military when he walked home after curfew....
(2/2) We weren’t allowed to watch the news in Iraq, so we didn't know the w…
(2/2) We weren’t allowed to watch the news in Iraq, so we didn't know the war was coming. But my uncle who lived in New Zealand knew and so when he called, he would say, ‘You know, it might be best if you try to go to Syria. It might be a better future.’ He had...
(1/2) I was born in 1983 during the war between Iraq and Iran, and my dad was fi…
(1/2) I was born in 1983 during the war between Iraq and Iran, and my dad was fighting on the front line. He used to visit us a few times per year. Growing up during the war wasn’t easy. We couldn’t go to school, and the sanctions really caused people to suffer...
I was in a serious relationship for 2 years. Things were going very smoothly, bu…
I was in a serious relationship for 2 years. Things were going very smoothly, but after our families met to discuss the marriage, he suddenly broke up with me. And I had no idea why. Then he suddenly announced his engagement to someone else. It was very difficult for...
My parents were very educated so they wanted me to go to school. But when I was …
My parents were very educated so they wanted me to go to school. But when I was around 10, school in Afghanistan was stopped because of the war. My neighbourhood was in a war zone, and there was always the noise of guns and bombs. We hid ourselves in basements so we...
As a child, I witnessed all the chaos that came with the war in Iraq – civil unr…
As a child, I witnessed all the chaos that came with the war in Iraq – civil unrest, people going missing, people dying. Also, as Christian Assyrians, we experienced religious persecution, where the militia would come to your door and tell you either to convert,...
(1/2) In 1974, I came straight from Mexico City – one of the biggest metropolis …
(1/2) In 1974, I came straight from Mexico City – one of the biggest metropolis in the world – to literally the back of Bourke! At my interview with the Australian embassy, the Consul asked me where I was going, and I said, ‘Oh, Bourke.’ I remember he stopped writing,...
