Refugee Day

Aza

I always wanted to study, but my father never allowed me. He would say that I should always work on the farm. I begged him to let me learn, but he insisted it wasn’t important. I always dreamed of being independent—to work, grow, and raise my son.

Living in Poland at first was terrifying. Fear of people and even daily tasks consumed me. I was afraid of being around others, afraid to talk to them, and scared someone might harm me. I feared everything, even leaving the house.

In Chechnya, a woman cannot be in the same room as another man. It’s said that such behavior brings shame. This feeling shouldn’t exist when both a man and a woman know their place and respect each other’s boundaries.

In Poland, I found a new family that loves me, and I love them. When I was in a center [for refugees], volunteers would visit us. They brought storybooks, and we read them together. Through these readings, I started learning Polish, and one of the volunteers became like a mother to me. I felt incredible care and realized that I am a human being. It reignited my desire to live.

For a long time, I struggled to find a job. During interviews, everyone asked about my hijab and wanted me to explain why I wear it. I would tell them that I’m a Muslim and cannot change my religion. What matters isn’t how I look but how I work and who I am as a person. Clothing doesn’t define a person; it’s what’s in their heart that counts. Eventually, I found a job where I met wonderful people who treated me with kindness. Later, I met similar people at IKEA—so many amazing individuals work there. I’d always heard from friends about this Swedish company with a great work atmosphere. I was curious about what it would be like to work in such a place.

I reached out to the Ocalenie Foundation, which helps women like me, and with their assistance, I got the job. As part of my work, I attend Polish lessons three times a week with a wonderful teacher.

I am grateful to the Almighty that such people exist. Every day, I pray for them. I also pray that all people will be kind. I don’t wish harm upon anyone. I respect everyone. We are all human beings. We are brothers and sisters. We must help and support each other every day.

My dream is to finish evening school and go to university. I want to study and grow. I’m interested in nature, the sea, and animals. I’m very open now and no longer afraid of anything. I’ve found psychological support. Before, I couldn’t say two words out of fear. Thanks to the help of others, I’ve regained my strength. I’ve come to understand that I am a full-fledged person and that I can be happy.

I used to think I couldn’t feel happiness, that something was wrong with me. The people I’ve met showed me that’s not true. I’ve encountered many individuals who have helped me with words and actions.

It’s important to me that people don’t fear me. I’m just like everyone else, regardless of my religion. I want people to understand this and not judge me through the lens of religion.

I am a Muslim, a Sunni, but I’m also an open person. I want to show everyone that religion is good; it’s just that people often misrepresent it. I want to encourage others to be kind, to respect one another, and not to cause harm.

Andrei

I’ve spent my entire life searching for answers to various questions, trying to reach my own conclusions. At first, I divided everything into separate categories—labels like men and women, dividing people by religion: Krishna devotees, Muslims, Catholics, Orthodox Christians; by race: white, Black; by politics: right-wing, left-wing. But over time, I realized that everything can be divided much more simply. People are either those who do good or those who do evil. It doesn’t depend on where they were born, where they live, or where they work. They either commit good deeds or bad deeds.

Eventually, I came to understand that there’s only one race on our planet—the Human Race—and, in my opinion, the only true religion is Love for God. If a religion promotes something else, it’s not about love.

We often think that if we act correctly, a wonderful outcome is inevitable. Imagine, for instance, driving on the road. Let’s say you have a good car in excellent condition, it’s passed all inspections, and you follow every traffic rule. Naturally, you believe you’ll reach your destination safely—what could possibly go wrong?

But what we often overlook is that we’re not the only ones on the road of life. There’s someone who might neglect their car, someone reckless, or someone with bad intentions—and they also affect our lives.

So it can happen that one fine day you leave your home to pick up your son, and years later you find yourself in another country due to circumstances beyond your control. Everything you’ve worked for—your property, house, car, savings, your status in society—can be left behind in the distant past. You’ll be in an entirely new place, learning how to live again, like a newborn child: crawling, learning a new language, picking up a different profession you’ve never dealt with, and using tools you’ve never known or been accustomed to.

So much in life depends on us, but unfortunately, not everything is within our control. We should remember that not everyone who ends up in a particular life situation is there because of their choices or mistakes. Sometimes, events beyond our control can lead to entirely different outcomes.

Throughout my life, I’ve met many people—some who shared my faith, came from the same country, and spoke my language but did indecent things. On the other hand, I’ve also encountered people who were different from me—praying differently, speaking another language, eating different foods, working in different jobs—but who did noble deeds, both towards others and towards me.

We shouldn’t divide ourselves; we should unite because there are already so many things in the world that divide us: programs, expressions, divisions by skin color, nationality, even sports teams. We’re constantly dividing.

Even if we do divide, we need to understand that these divisions should be purely superficial, like sports rivalries. They shouldn’t affect our minds or relationships. Everything can be understood. Today, there are countless ways to communicate, learn to talk and write, and understand each other better. In this respect, our planet is progressing rapidly, and we should use these tools—programs, exchanges of experience.

I’m really living my second life now. It’s entirely different from the first one—different people, different food, different language.