"Diary Of A Refugee"
...are very kind to me. I really like Australia, especially all the freedom I have, but I still miss home. I don’t know why father did such a terrible thing that fateful day. Why did he need to sit on a land mine? Why would he do such a thing? Sometimes I cry at night, because I know that father will never be able to find me here in Australia. My feelings are confused. I am very sad but also extremely angry at father. Why did he do such a thing? He left me all alone, to start a new life here in Australia. What if Aunty Dung hadn’t been here? Where would I be now? Father was very stupid; why would he leave me, I thought he loved me; he knew how much I cared for him. I am very scared of this new big country. It is very different to Vietnam. I feel different and get lots of stares. I feel awkward and sometimes trip and fall because I am nervous. Life is very scary here. I wish father was here to help me settle in! I just don’t know what to do. The other day one of my classmates invited me over to dinner. We began eating and I noticed they were using something they call a “knife and fork”. I had never seen these before, let alone used them. We still use chopsticks at Aunt Dung’s house. Even though the entire family tried to help, I still ended up spilling the food all over the floor. I was very embarrassed and wanted to leave straight away. I wish I was back in Vietnam where I understood everything and everyone understood me. Though I wish the most that father was here. We did such a lot together. I’m not just sad and angry, I’m very lonely. Oh father, why did you leave me, I loved you so much… Diary Entry 2: I can’t believe I have been in Australia 12 months! I’m in high school now and am finally starting to feel like part of the Australian culture. I have made many new friends. They are great to me. Sometimes though I still get weird stares and rude names, but I just always think about the saying Peter, my best friend tells me “it’s their problem mate, not yours”. I like that; it makes me feel part of the crowd. It feels kind of strange writing down my feelings like this, but it helps, especially when I think of Father and Vietnam. I thought about both a lot today – I was 13! It was great; I had not felt so happy in such a long time. Aunt Dung gave me a big birthday party – Presents and a big Aussie BBQ! Father you would have liked it. I just wish I could have celebrated it with you. I miss you so much father, I don’t feel angry anymore. I just wish you were here. It’s weird, sometimes I dream of you, Mother and our house in Vietnam. We are always very happy in the dream, but when I wake up my eyes always fill with tears. Father, sometimes I feel as if I don’t know where I belong. I want to keep up my Vietnamese culture but I w...