It was very difficult
to understand why I was ignored by my peers and taken for granted by the adults, all I ever wanted was to do my best. Having had lost everything in my homeland, I was eager to start my life all over again and leave the negative behind. I worked as hard as I could on my music, school and the newly acquired activity, table tennis, my progress and achievements were noticed. It was not that I was so gifted, I thought, only because I felt left out and overlooked, all my time was consumed by studying. I had no choice. My studies became my only “friend”, I felt comfort and escape from the negative reality around me. Yet….I was only a child and separated from my parents, to be accepted was so important to me. I wondered: why do I always have to prove myself, why was I not just accepted like all the other children. I did not blame anybody, the war was over, people had suffered, it had made wounds and it took time to heal. As the years went by, attitude toward the refugees changed, and we all worked together for a better future for all of us. The diversity of ideas and culture “sprinkled” with faith, hope and hard work by my peers and I made my life wonderful again.
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