FRESH20 Catalogue - Flipbook - Page 24
SIMONE
SCHROEDER
LACUNA
It is known that people who travel, become easily attracted to a life in a foreign country.
Most of the time they will choose a place to live which reminds them of their old home
or neighbourhood. They will find a job, buy a house, and raise children.
Even though many migrants adapt to their surroundings by becoming an integral part
of their new culture and community, studies suggest that the process of relocation
and migration can always have major impacts on each person, especially their sense
of identity, place and belonging. Individuals can experience notions of displacement,
alienation and/or develop a cultural hybrid identity.
The last time, I returned to my country of birth, I felt like a stranger. Familiar places and
friendships I cherished over the years had become unfamiliar, estranged and distant
memories. Now, I am nothing more than a visitor in my home country.
I am from that place, but I am dwelling elsewhere, my heart in a box carried along the
way. Fragments and shards collected over time, became a part of me, vanished or
sometimes make me still vulnerable as I yearn to keep them close by.
Lately I have started filling in the blank spaces. I can feel there is something new
emerging from the inside out, breaking the surface and longing for air.
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